


Protective Instincts

by bailey1ak



Category: Stargate Atlantis, Stargate SG-1
Genre: Crossover, Crossover Pairings, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2010-04-14
Updated: 2010-04-14
Packaged: 2017-11-12 18:21:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 14
Words: 31,238
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/494259
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bailey1ak/pseuds/bailey1ak
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Sequel to Kissing Traditions. Dr. Keller runs into trouble on an off-world mission with Colonel Reynolds’ team. Col. Cameron Mitchell heads up the SAR mission with the help of his team as well as a team from Atlantis.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Morning

**Author's Note:**

> A/N: Finally wrote a sequel to Kissing Traditions. I'll say right up front I found out that not having the pre-ship angst is hard for me to write. Hope Cam/Jenn's 'middle of a ship' chemistry comes through in this story. Enjoy!
> 
> Disclaimer: I do not own any part of Stargate Atlantis, Stargate SG1 or it's wonderful characters.
> 
> Spoilers: Probably Everything SGA & SG1. If you are worried it may be better not to read – sorry.
> 
> On the timeline: About six months after SGA's episode Enemy at the Gate and the end of Kissing Traditions.

1 – Morning

Colonel Cameron Mitchell was awoken by the alarm on his bedside table. He groaned loudly as he lifted his body far enough off the bed to hit the off button before flipping himself onto his back.

He heard light laughter in the room causing him to break into a grin as he stared up at the ceiling. "What's so funny?" he asked, closing his eyes and absorbing her sweet laughter.

"I wouldn't have pegged you for not being a morning person," Dr. Jennifer Keller teased as she finished securing her hair in a pony tail for the day. "I thought it was a prerequisite for growing up on a farm."

"It's not about _not_ being a morning person, I just hate waking up to that damn alarm." Cameron lifted his head slightly and took a closer look at Jennifer as she moved toward the bed. "I preferred it when you woke me in the morning," he continued with a pout. "You're not as shrill, and there's usually kissing involved."

Jennifer shook her head at his complaining, " _You_ made it a kissing tradition," she chuckled, stopping at the foot of the bed. "Kind of demanded it the first morning after I moved onto the base."

Cameron loved that she'd finally moved onto the base. After Atlantis took up residence near San Francisco, Jennifer had resigned as CMO, spending two months on Atlantis before the resignation officially took effect and she was able to hand the entire facility over to Dr. Carson Beckett.

She'd lived on base at the SGC now for four months and he loved that she'd immediately moved in with him. She had her own quarters down the hall, but she'd never slept in her assigned room. All of her belongings that were transferred from the city to the base were delivered to her assigned room, but what she wanted and needed on a daily basis had found a home in his quarters or his off base apartment.

"Are you complaining about having to kiss me?" he asked quirking his eyebrows up in challenge.

"No," she said as she knelt at the foot of the bed and began crawling up his body until they were face to face, "but now that I'm no longer on night shifts I'm afraid that alarm will be doing most of the waking around here." She leaned down and kissed him, the sweet vanilla scent that enveloped him attesting to her recent shower.

"Not much of a morning person myself," she quietly added before capturing his lips yet again. Cameron attempted to raise his arms to wrap them around Jenn and pull her closer, but found most of his body trapped by the bedding with her body pinning him to the bed.

"You realize we both have missions this morning?" he asked, his voice getting huskier.

"Yep," she answered, as she leaned in for another kiss, his lips meeting hers for a quick kiss.

"And that we have to leave shortly," Cameron added without much conviction in his voice as he gave her another quick kiss.

"Yep," she answered absently, continuing to meet his kisses.

"Like very shortly," Cameron said as he pulled back far enough for his bright blue eyes to meet her smoky hazel ones. He saw the twinkle in her eyes and the smirk on her face and couldn't help but laugh despite her weight on his chest.

"Yep. I also know that you've been in the service long enough and had discipline and responsibility drilled into you by the military well enough," she pointed out as she dipped her head down and began planting kisses along his neck, "that there is no way you'll let us be even a minute late." By this time she'd made her way to his ear and he felt her pull back an inch before whispering, "Colonel" in his ear.

He growled as he lifted high enough to free his arms and flip her onto her back. He leaned over her. "You're so gonna pay for that when we get back from our respective missions tonight," he threatened in a deep voice.

She grinned before winking at him, "Counting on it."

Cameron wanted to glare at her, but her playful attitude was contagious and she was right… they needed to get going or they'd be late. He leaned down and captured her lips in a quick, hard kiss before climbing off the bed. He turned back and offered his hand to help her up.

Jennifer gave him a once over before taking his hand. He only had on a pair of boxers and dog tags and was a sight to behold.

Cam glared at her reprovingly when he caught her look, "I'm going to go shower," he said as he released her.

"You're taking Capt. Jacobs with you today aren't you?" Jenn inquired, changing the subject.

"Yeah, today is the first day with members of Lorne's team, just a field observation kind of thing," Cam said leaning in and kissing her goodbye, "Stay safe."

"You too," Jennifer replied. "Tell Jacobs I said hi and give him a hug and kiss for me," she added making her way to the door. "And you might want to make it a cold shower," she said with a laugh as she quickly exited the room.

XXX  


Colonel Albert Reynolds walked at his teams six as they made their way toward the town of Darsam on P3X-408 located about 3 miles from the gate. Although this was a medical escort mission, his team was on alert for any danger. After spending some time escorting Dr. Keller in the past they'd found that all missions had the potential to take a bad turn.

SG-3 was typically the team assigned to escort Keller when she was off-world. Reynolds enjoyed the change of pace from time to time and his team had quickly been won over by the young doctor becoming not only protective even when not off-world but also a bit possessive. She seemed to have this sweet, girl-next-door type personality that just drew people in. It's also what made her a perfect fit in his opinion for Colonel Mitchell. They both seemed to share a small town ease and friendliness that worked well in their jobs and he enjoyed seeing the two of them so obviously happy.

Reynolds team was not infamous in the galaxy like SG-1. His team's names would never precede them, bringing both excitement and relief to some worlds, dread and a challenge to others. Reynolds smiled thinking of how despite that, they were still starting to make a name for themselves. Not as SG-3 or even as Colonel Reynolds, Captain Baker, Lieutenant Bosco or Lieutenant Mooney, but rather as those who brought the Tau'ri healer.

The worlds they escorted Dr. Keller to seemed to fall under her spell as well. She was quickly trusted and given the same kind of treatment you'd expect to see given to a favorite aunt. Darsam wasn't any different. The fact that Reynolds thought of it as Darsam and not P3X-408 was a perfect example of the influence she had over them all.

Today's medical mission was just a follow-up, almost an excuse to be off-world. Dr. Keller had promised the parents of an eight year-old boy that she'd return to check on his healing progress, even though it was unnecessary.

About four weeks before - his team's arrival on P3X-408 had been a routine check in with a trading partner, but Reynolds had quickly discovered a problem when the rulers of the town wouldn't meet with them. Their behavior didn't add up to what he knew about the ruling family so he decided to ask a few more questions. Once he'd ascertained the reason he'd sent Bosco and Mooney to the gate to radio the situation in to General Landry and request Dr. Keller.

The son of the rulers had received a wound while disobeying his parent's orders to not be playing down by the river where he'd slipped and cut his leg. He'd been able to hide the injury from his unsuspecting parents until he began to burn with a fever.

Jennifer had treated the child for the infection that'd ravished his body and they'd spent an extra night on the planet until the fever had broken. By the time they'd headed for the gate the next day they were on first name basis with the family and Jennifer had even shortened their names to ones she could manage without any objections from the family.

Reynolds noticed the town was now in view and was not surprised to see the friendly welcome in the waves and greetings of those they passed. He shook his head, it was nice to be recognized, even if it was because of the young doctor in their midst.

XXX  


Colonel Mitchell entered the Gate room and found most of his team assembled; they seemed to be waiting on Dr. Jackson. This mission was right up Jackson's ally as far as missions went. SG-16 had scouted the planet a couple days before and found no signs there were any inhabitants on the planet, but ruins with writings on them would definitely interest Dr. Jackson.

Cameron noticed Capt. Jacobs talking with Teal'c and Vala and began to make his way toward the group. Capt. Jacobs was one of a long list of personnel from Atlantis that'd recently been rotating into the SG1 lineup. Cameron had struck a deal with Colonel Sheppard to do many of the field evaluations of the military personnel on Atlantis. It suited both Colonels perfectly… Sheppard hated to do the evaluations, so having Cameron do the field component was a load off his shoulders and more importantly eliminating even a portion of the paperwork had the man doing cartwheels. Being close to the SGC Sheppard was under pressure to finish them in a timely manner.

In turn, Cameron was under a bit of pressure himself to fill the vacant slot on the SG1 team with the departure of Colonel Samantha Carter. She'd finally taken command of the Daedalus Class ship _General Hammond_ , and although she seemed settled, Cameron wanted to hold her vacancy open as long as possible. A very small part of him was still holding out hope that she'd miss the team and the missions and decide to come back.

It wasn't an unfounded hope by any means, after all Sam had already come back to the team twice. The first had been her return from the R & D department at Area 51 when Cam had first become the leader of SG-1 and then again after her year away to lead the Atlantis Expedition. The rational side of Mitchell knew he'd have to fill the vacancy, but he was allowing himself this moment of denial for a little bit longer.

"Captain Jacobs," Cam greeted as he came to stand with his team.

"Colonel Mitchell," Jacobs returned coming to attention in front of his superior.

Mitchell held in his sigh, "At ease, Jacobs. Let's not stand on ceremony the rest of the day, got it?"

"Yes, sir," the Captain returned with a grin. He'd heard that Col. Mitchell was relaxed in his command, similar to Sheppard in his style. He'd been in Mitchell's presence a few times since Atlantis had come back to Earth, but this would be the first close encounter with the man. He figured though if Mitchell had Jennifer's heart he must be one of the good guys. "Hear I just missed seeing Dr. Keller, seems she went through the gate with Colonel Reynold's team just before I arrived."

"Yes, well, Jennifer says hello," Mitchell began, "but the non-frat regs keep me from delivering the rest of her message," he finished with a tolerant roll of his eyes.

Jacobs had the good sense to not say anything, but couldn't keep the smirk from his face.

"So, did you arrive this morning through the gate," Cameron asked, hoping for some small talk while they waited for Daniel.

"No, the Daedalus is back in orbit. Colonel Caldwell beamed me over," Jacobs responded.

"Bet the Colonel hates playing doorman," Cam commented wryly shaking his head.

Jacobs smirked, "Just chalked it up to him not being much of a morning person, sir."

"Bet the engineers would be done installing the Asgard beams in the SGC and the City if the Colonel was checking on their progress from time to time," Cam thought aloud with a small grin.

Jacobs was saved from having to find an acceptable response with the appearance of Dr. Jackson. Mitchell signaled to Walter they were ready and the gate began the process of locking in chevrons.


	2. Off World

2 – Off World

In Darsam, SG-3 was escorted through an off world version of a city hall building to the wing that housed the living quarters for the current rulers of Darsam.

"Sir Joran, Lady Adeya," Col. Reynolds greeted as his team was presented to the ruling family.

"Colonel Reynolds, welcome," Joran replied as he clasped Reynolds' hand before turning to Dr. Keller, a look of delight on his face as his eyes landed on her answering smile.

"Dr. Keller, it is an honor," he said taking her hand in his for a moment, before turning toward his wife.

"Yes, thank you so much for returning," Lady Adeya greeted as she approached the healer.

"I've told you both," Dr. Keller gently reprimanded, "that Jennifer is fine. How are the boys, Addy?" Jenn asked as she leaned in and hugged the woman smiling sheepishly in front of her.

"They are doing well. Maton and Raimor are both looking forward to seeing you, but your visit was most likely unnecessary," Addy replied with a twinge of regret. She hated wasting the healer's time, but was also glad to see her again. Jennifer hadn't just healed her son, but in the process had calmed their fears and befriended her family.

Lady Adeya's thoughts were interrupted by the noisy appearance of her sons. "Raimor! Maton! Calm," she ordered the energetic duo as they bounded into the main living space.

Colonel Reynolds wasn't surprised by the contrite looks upon the boy's faces as they apologized to their mother. He had to smile though at how quickly their looks returned to barely contained joy as they turned their attention back to Dr. Keller.

Jenn laughed at the boys as she held out her arms to them. "Matt, Raimy," she greeted as they both gave her hugs and smiles, no shyness evident. "How have you boys been?"

"We've been good, Healer Jenn," Raimy, the eight year old excitedly answered.

"I've told you it's just Jenn," she laughed at the youngest boy while ruffling his dark hair.

"Come see what we've done," he said tugging on her hand.

Jennifer looked with an indulgent smile down at the boy who stood just a bit past her waist before looking over at the eldest son. "And what _have_ you done?"

"Come and see for yourself," Matt responded with a grin. He was only two years older than Raimy, but stood almost to Jennifer's shoulder. He had the same dark, unruly hair as his brother, but his eyes hinted at a much more mature version of his younger brother.

Jennifer gave a quick look at Reynolds and received an almost imperceptible nod in return before she allowed the boys to tug her down a hall toward their quarters. Once inside she looked about amazed. "You two did all this?" Jenn was unable to keep the wonder out of her voice.

"Yes, yes. Are they not beautiful, Jenn?" Raimy exclaimed as he moved about the room looking at the pictures upon the walls.

"Mother helped us a little," Matt admitted sheepishly.

"Even mothers enjoy coloring," Jennifer teased. The boys had colored pictures that now adorned almost all the empty space of two adjoining walls. Now that Jenn was living in the SGC and had access to stores and shopping she'd begun bringing coloring books and crayons with her on missions off world. The children were always amazed and distracted by the many colors and possibilities. This however was the first time she'd really gotten to revisit with children she'd given the supplies to. "This is so colorful and beautiful boys."

Jennifer knew Reynolds and his team would be busy discussing trade and alliance issues with Sir Joran and Lady Adeya and she settled in to enjoy her time with the boys.

Maton and Raimor showed her which pictures each had colored and asked her an incessant number of questions about the images they'd colored. In an effort to only give out coloring books that'd be the least confusing, Jennifer had discovered that Disney movie themed coloring books worked best. Most dealt with animals and people and didn't have technology that would be hard to explain or uninteresting to the kids. The two that she had left with the boys had been _The Lion King_ and _Finding Nemo_. Jennifer found herself spending the next hour telling the boys both stories and pointing out the pictures they'd colored that went with a particular point in the story.

"Well, I brought more with me," she announced, quickly gaining the boys attention. Jennifer looked upon their excited faces, "Why don't we quickly do Raimy's check-up and then I'll show you what I brought for you guys?"

Raimy eagerly sat down on his bed and waited for Dr. Jenn to begin his exam. Matt began to pace impatiently while both boys tried to convince her to give them hints. She teased them with details that held no meaning for them and laughed at some of their wild guesses.

She was almost done with the checkup when they were suddenly quieted by the sound of gunfire. Jennifer had been on enough missions to immediately recognize it as P-90 fire. She swiftly looked about the room for a place to hide the boys, not seeing any great possibilities.

"Matt! Raimy, quick, under the bed." Jennifer ordered nervously dividing her time between watching the boys scurry under the bed and keeping an eye on the door. It was the only access to the room and unfortunately the only exit from the room as well. There was a row of small glass blocks high along the wall letting in light, but not even Raimy was small enough to fit through any opening she might've been able to create.

"Keller," came a quiet, but urgent voice.

"Damn," Jennifer said under her breath as she caught herself reaching for her ear before remember that she was no longer on Atlantis.

"We're here, Colonel," she replied quietly into her radio attached to her BDU before she turned her attention back to the boys. "Stay quiet and stay hidden," she instructed while trying to look reassuringly at both of them as she squatted down on the floor next to the bed.

"Stay quiet and stay hidden," she heard Reynolds order and rolled her eyes at the boys, hoping the humor would help quell the scared looks on the boys' faces.

"Yes, Sir," Jennifer replied before standing and scanning the room looking for something to defend herself with.

XXX  


Colonel Mitchell walked to the shady side of the ruins on P4X-721 and sat down, leaning his back against the stone structure. He loved everything about his job, even the planets that were abandoned seemed to spark his imagination. Cam wondered what the planet used to hold. Was it a town or gathering place? Were the Ancients or Asgard here in the past, or did they create this place for another race of people? What caused the planet to be abandoned?

Cameron figured Jackson might be able to answer some of those questions once he'd analyzed the ruins and interpreted the writings. While Daniel was doing that Cam, Teal'c, Vala and Capt. Jacobs had fanned out to search as well as secure the surrounding area. Although no other buildings were found, Cam had walked through several areas that'd been cleared at some point in the past. With vegetation built up there were no clues as to the initial clearing's purpose.

Cameron looked up at Capt. Jacobs' approach and smiled, "The squabbling getting to ya?"

"Are they always like that?" Jacobs asked with a chuckle, settling down near the Colonel. "They remind me of time spent with my sister when I was a kid."

"Daniel and Vala do have a unique way of communicating," Cam acknowledged diplomatically with a grin. "Teal'c?" Cam asked after the Jaffa.

"Went for a walk of the perimeter about five minutes ago."

"Abandoned you did he?" Cam laughed.

"Felt that way, Sir," Jacobs responded with a smirk.

After another fifteen minutes Mitchell decided it was time to rally the troops. With an hour hike back to the gate still ahead of them he was eager to get started. "It's about that time, kids," he announced loudly as he walked back into the ruins so as to be heard above the bickering duo.

"Just a couple more minutes," Daniel protested while he continued to scribble in his notebook.

"Did you take video and photos of everything?" Cam asked aloud while looking at Vala.

She grinned widely at Mitchell, "Of course."

"Then we are gone, Jackson. Pack it in, buddy," Mitchell finished his casual order throwing a thumb over his shoulder in the general direction of the gate.

Teal'c, who'd just returned and Capt. Jacobs each grabbed one of Jackson's bags once the doctor had finished grudgingly packing up and they all headed out.

Capt. Jacobs was a peacemaker at heart and never felt comfortable for long with silence or grumpiness, even if he knew it wasn't personal. "So Colonel… how has Doc been doing now that she's away from Atlantis? Has she been able to shake the Keller Curse?"

Colonel Mitchell had been walking at point with Teal'c and Jacobs next followed by Jackson and Vala bringing up their six, when he suddenly came to a stop and turned back to look at Jacobs.

"The what?" Mitchell asked incredulously.

The Captain fidgeted slightly at the Colonel's tone and stance. This was the problem with working under a casual command for too long, you lost the ability to clearly see the insubordination line. Jacobs was sure he'd just stumbled blindly across it.

"I'm sorry, Colonel, that was uncalled for," Jacobs quickly backpedaled. "I was only trying to inquire about the Doc's … um, ability to attract…"

Jacobs was saved from having to find the words to adequately pull himself out of the hole by the laughter behind him. He turned to see Vala almost doubled over and Jackson grinning broadly. When he pivoted back and looked at Teal'c, he found the big guy quite stoic in posture and expression, except for one raised eyebrow and a bit of mischief shinning in his eyes.

Jacobs felt a rough slap on his upper shoulder and turned to find the Colonel smirking at him, then laughing at the worried look upon Jacob's face. "At ease, Captain, just didn't realize that her luck had become infamous enough to be labeled."

"In all fairness," the Captain grinned, now that he knew he wasn't going to be court-martialed, "it's not like her luck is any worse than Sheppard's. It's just the situations she finds herself in seem to be more uniquely… Jennifer in style."

"That'd be one way of putting it," Daniel said on a chuckle.

"The Keller Curse…" Vala said as if she was weighing the title. "Yeah, that about sums up the girl's off-world experiences. And I'd definitely agree that it's not necessarily bad luck either. That last mission was just hilarious and couldn't have happened to anyone else except Keller."

"I believe it may be due to the fact that Dr. Keller is a Tau'ri healer," Teal'c suggested. "The oath to do no harm is taken very seriously, as it should be."

Cameron grinned at Jacobs, "Actually this last mission was just Jennifer being Jennifer." Cam thought back to that mission just a few days ago with a smile and slight shake of his head.

_"Colonel Mitchell, report to the control room immediately."_

_Cameron heard the call over the base wide system. He wasn't sure why he was needed, but Colonel Reynolds' team was late for their scheduled return. Jennifer was with Reynolds' team and Cam had already begun heading in the direction of the control room to see what their delay was. He picked up the pace now, sure this had something to do with their mission._

_As Mitchell entered the control room he came to attention, "Sir?"_

_General Landry turned to Mitchell, the Stargate spinning in the background. "We're checking in with SG-3. They're 15 minutes past their scheduled return. I may need to send SG-1 out for search and rescue."_

_"Sir," Walter interrupted, "we have a lock."_

_The gate whooshed to life as Walter spoke and Cameron took a deep breath in and slowly let it out in an attempt to calm his heart rate. There was probably a perfectly good explanation for why SG-3 was late returning. His own team was late often for return times, things happened, meetings ran late, weather and a whole host of other things often interfered._

_"SG-3, Colonel Reynolds, this is General Landry, report."_

_Cam held his breath not wanting to miss a word, his eyes boring into the open wormhole as if he'd be able to see what was happening on the other side._

_"General Landry, this is Colonel Reynolds, Sir."_

_Reynolds was always cool under pressure and Cameron was unable to discern anything from his voice, but the fact that the leader of SG-3 was able to readily respond was something Cameron took as a good sign._

_"Sorry for our delay, General, we've encountered a bit of an obstacle between our current location and the gate. We may need to hold here just a bit longer, Sir."_

_General Landry looked at Mitchell and then back toward the wormhole. Cam almost smiled thinking the General shared his desire to be able to see through the shimmering puddle._

_"Walter, pull up video feed from the M.A.L.P.," Landry ordered quietly._

_The General then raised his voice for Reynolds, "Colonel, we're waiting on video feed from the M.A.L.P."_

_"That won't do any good, General," came Reynolds voice, even as Walter shook his head in the negative also. "Sir, the M.A.L.P has been disabled… um… there was a bit of… of an anger issue on this end."_

_Cameron could almost hear the cringe in Reynolds words and it was the only thing keeping Cam from worrying anew. He knew Colonel Reynolds would've called for backup or for Medical immediately if there was any emergency._

_"Colonel?" Landry spoke sternly, clearly just as frustrated as Cameron with the lack of information they were receiving._

_"Sir, there is a large, angry, bear-like creature between our position and the gate."_

_"Is it a threat, Colonel?" Landry asked, his voice softening a bit._

_"Not at the moment, Sir. However it will prevent us from making it to the gate."_

_"If it becomes a threat, Colonel, you might need to shoot it," Landry stated, giving Mitchell a confused look when urgent hushed words and whispers were heard._

_Mitchell heard Reynolds clear his throat, "In the creature's defense, Sir, we did kind of startle it when we arrived at the gate. We were quiet and didn't give it much warning of our approach, probably scared it as much as ourselves."_

_Cameron looked quickly at the ground, lifting his hand to his mouth to hide his smirk and hopefully hold in his chuckle._

_His movements did not go unnoticed by the General. "Colonel Mitchell, is there something you would like to share with us?"_

_It wasn't really a question. "She won't let them shoot it," he stated. At the still confused look on Landry's face, Cam clarified, "Dr. Keller."_

_Although Landry's expression said nothing, Cameron could see a twinkle in his eye and was glad the General had a sense of humor, even if he was keeping it to himself._

_"Colonel," Landry started again to Reynolds, "I'll send through SG-12 with a couple of tranquilizer guns. Give us about fifteen minutes."_

_"That would be good, Sir, please tell the team to head straight for the trees on the left. We'll distract the critter as long as possible on the right."_

_There was a bit of a pause before Reynolds continued, "The team will need to get themselves off the ground. The animal can move quite quickly and is about the size of my SUV. I'm unsure how long the tranquilizers will take to incapacitate it."_

_Cameron couldn't ignore the mental image of what Reynolds' words implied and found himself smirking and again hoped the hand at his mouth would help hold in any laughter. God he loved that woman. Cameron knew that if the large creature posed a threat Reynolds and his team would take it out swiftly, but Jenn's influence over the Colonel and his men was priceless._

_When his eyes met the General's he was met with raised eyebrows. He quickly tried to sober, "Sorry, Sir. The… um, thought of SG-3 hanging out in the trees reminds me of a scene from the Sound of Music."_

_Mitchell heard a cough behind him and turned to see Dr. Jackson standing with the rest of his team trying not to laugh. They'd obviously been standing there for a bit._

_Landry rolled his eyes and looked back toward the wormhole, "SG-12 will be so advised, Landry out." The General motioned for Walter to shut down the gate. "Walter, please call SG-12 to the briefing room."_

_Landry turned back toward Mitchell and his team, "You all are dismissed."_

_'Yes, Sirs' were quickly murmured as they all made their way out of the control room._

_As Jackson walked by Mitchell he slapped his back making Cameron cringe at what was coming next._

_"You and the Fraulein should join us in the mess hall once Reynolds team is back," Daniel said with a laugh before he turned and escorted a slightly confused Teal'c and Vala down the hall._

Cameron had to laugh along with his team and Captain Jacobs as their own gate came into site. At least Daniel had stopped with the _Sound of Music_ jokes after a few intense glares from Reynolds team later that night in the mess hall. Cameron did have to sit through the Sound of Music at the next team movie night at Vala's insistence that she and Teal'c needed the intel.

Cameron put up a good show of being annoyed by Daniel's ribbing, but Cam knew Daniel meant no harm by it. Besides, Cameron still teased the scientist endlessly about Vala and knew a little payback between friends was in order.

Surprisingly, other than being embarrassed, Jennifer took the teasing in stride. He suspected she saw the humor in the situation, even if it was at her own expense. The fact that he and Daniel had ended up having to sit through a long-ass chick flick hadn't gone unnoticed by either of them.


	3. Volunteer

3 – Volunteer

Looking around Maton and Raimor's room on Darsam, Dr. Keller concluded there was nothing that remotely resembled a weapon. Colonel Reynolds had told her to 'stay quiet and stay hidden' so Jennifer moved to hide herself under a small table in the room. It wasn't the best hiding spot, but she wanted to make sure she was between any intruder and the boys hiding under the bed.

As she waited for news from Reynolds or the team she strained her ears to hear anything from beyond the room. She hadn't heard anymore gunfire since that initial round and it'd been several minutes, but felt like longer. There were noises of movement from time to time, but nothing distinctive enough to gage what was happening. Jennifer continued to look about the room, trying to formulate a plan should it come down to her being the only protection for the boys.

Their room didn't have much to offer, no alternate exit, high small windows. The furnishings were simple, beds, a table with a few chairs, some books and a few toys. Jennifer's inventory of the room was interrupted by a louder scuffle heard from a distance down the hall and then more P-90 fire. After a pause that seemed to last forever, but in reality was just over a minute, Jennifer was relieved to hear Reynolds' calm voice over the radio.

"Dr. Keller we need you in the main living space," she could hear the frustration in his voice, but it lacked the urgency of an emergency. "Bring the boys and your medical bags."

"On our way," she responded, already motioning the boys to come out from under the bed and slinging her medical bag over her shoulder.

XXX  


"This is not the first kidnapping attempt," Keller heard Joran explain to Reynolds as she stitched up Capt. Baker. The Captain had a knife wound on his upper arm, but due to the man's BDUs it hadn't been as deep as it could've been.  
There were two dead men on the far side of the room, the men who had tried to break into the home. Jenn had checked both for pulses quickly when she'd first arrived in the room before seeing to the Captain's injury. Lady Adeya had quickly gathered her boys and moved them to the opposite side of the room distancing them from the disturbing sight.

"So how long ago was the first attempt?" Reynolds asked with concern. If his team hadn't been there he had no doubt the outcome would've been a lot different.

"Three days ago, but my security officers were nearby and responded swiftly. We spooked the men into running away. I had hoped it was a one time occurrence," the ruler responded sliding a quick glance in the direction of the prone men across the room. His security teams had arrived and were searching the bodies for clues.

Jennifer finished patching up the Marine and reminded him to be careful with it before making her way over to Addy and the boys.

"Healer Jennifer, I can not thank you enough for protecting my boys," Addy said tightening her arm around each and holding them close.

The boys still had fear in their eyes, although it had softened with relief since being reunited with their parents. "They were very good boys and obeyed instantly," Jennifer reassured her.

Adeya and Jennifer turned quite quickly as they watched one of the security officers make his way over to Joran and Colonel Reynolds' side. He was tall and Jennifer could tell immediately he was in charge from the confident way he approached the men.

"Colonel Reynolds, this is Darsam's lead security officer, Granthum," Joran said by way of introduction.

Reynolds acknowledged the security officer with a nod, "Granthum."

"Reynolds. I am sorry for the harm your people were put in while visiting," he replied wearily. "Any injuries?" he asked looking around the room.

Reynolds nodded in Capt. Baker's direction near one of the windows, "A knife wound, he'll be fine. This is not your first kidnapping attempt I hear. Can I ask how you know kidnapping is the motivation for the intrusion?"

"The first break in happened at night," Granthum explained. "We happened to be doing a patrol on this end of the town and noticed the door ajar at the back of Sir Joran's home. The intruders were scared off, but they were heard arguing loudly as they left about being in hot water for screwing up the kidnapping. We added security of the family home at night, but did not count on these men being so brazen as to attempt anything during the day."

Granthum stole a look at Joran's family across the room and lowered his voice, "We're still unclear as to the target of the kidnapping or the purpose."

Colonel Reynolds looked about the room. His men had taken up positions near the doorways and windows of the room. Dr. Keller was standing with Lady Adeya and the boys, trying to be a strong comfort. The rest of the security team was across the room with the two dead men. The Colonel felt torn… he didn't want to leave Joran and his family if they were in danger, but they also were due back at the SGC in a few hours.

Granthum must've been thinking along the same lines, or at least read Reynolds' thoughts, "If I knew they were safe I could concentrate on eliminating the threat instead of dividing my time between searching and protecting."

"They can come with us to the SGC. We can then come back and help or see how things are progressing," Colonel Reynolds suggested, glad that Granthum wasn't insecure about accepting outside help.

"I'd be in your debt, Colonel," Granthum acknowledged.

"No debt," Reynolds reassured as he signaled his team to pack it up.

XXX  


"Welcome back, SG-1," General Landry called to the team as they sauntered down the ramp. "Quiet mission?"

"Yes, sir," Mitchell responded. Cam always felt a sense of great accomplishment when he walked down the ramp with no injuries and a successful mission.

"Teal'c," Landry called, "I understand you're due to dial back out in fifteen minutes to go spend time with your Jaffa brethren."

"Indeed."

"Please give them our regards."

"That I will, General Landry."

The General looked at the rest of the team, "Briefing in an hour."

The group gave the General nods as they were dismissed and filed out of the gate room.

"Captain," Cameron turned to Jacobs as they made their way down the hall to the armory and after that would be a stop in the infirmary, "let's have the evaluation in my office after the debrief. That'll give us time for a quick lunch."

Jacobs gave him a nod as they turned into the armory. Maybe this delay would give him a chance to say hey to Jennifer if she returned soon. He missed the young doctor, he'd even say he missed the hi-jinx of the missions with her. Hearing the story the Colonel told on the trek back to the gate made that more acute.

XXX  


Colonel Reynolds and Officer Granthum had discussed the advantages of having the Royal Family away from Darsam and safe. It'd give his own men and their limited resources a chance to concentrate on extinguishing this treat to Jaron's family. With only six other security officers for all of Darsam, being able to free them up for the investigation would definitely give them an advantage and speed things up.

Reynolds was now on point with Lt. Mooney as they made the three mile trek back to the gate. He turned to look back down the path. They were followed by Lady Adeya and Dr. Keller who were discussing the different antics the boys had been up to lately. Security officer Gerod, whom Granthum had dispatched to escort them to the gate was directly behind the women. Sir Joran and the boys were further behind carrying on an animated discussion. He wasn't sure of the topic, but he wouldn't be surprised if it had to do with their destination. The boys had been quite excited at the prospect of getting to go through the ring to the SGC.

Bringing up their six was Captain Baker and Lt. Bosco, he expected and wasn't disappointed, to note their alertness. He was starting to feel the same unease he was sure was contributing to their attentiveness.

As they made their way down the path Reynolds noted the landscape changing and knew they were at about the halfway point back to the gate. The upcoming section of path was a little worrisome for the Colonel. It had a slight rise on each side of the path creating a gully for a bit.

Reynolds called the team to a halt. Baker and Bosco moved to join Reynolds and Mooney.

"I don't like this next section of the path," Reynolds stated to the agreeing nods of his team. He turned to Officer Gerod, "Is there an alternative path to the ring, one that is more open?" he asked as he nodded at the high banks on each side.

"We could forge our way through the woods, but there is no other path," Gerod replied with regret.

"Baker, stay here with Dr. Keller and Sir Joran's family. Gerod, I'd like you to stay also. You're more familiar with these surroundings if plans need to change. Bosco and Mooney… you're with me." The Colonel turned back to Baker, "We'll scout the stretch ahead and radio when it's secure."

Baker nodded his head and moved back with Keller and the ruling family. He moved them a little bit off the path and into the woods, giving them a bit of cover while they waited.

XXX  


Captain Baker had been standing a bit away from the others for the last ten minutes when shots rang out down the path. "Colonel," Baker called into the radio as he looked attentively down the path. He was grateful that Dr. Keller had been on enough off world missions that he knew she'd quieted the group and had them hunkered down somewhere behind him. "Keller," he called quietly.

"Yeah, stay quiet and stay hidden," she recited back. Jennifer had been on numerous missions these last few months with SG-3 and had the phrase drilled into her head. She'd moved Sir Joran and his family a few steps further off the path behind a fallen tree that paralleled the path. They were able to kneel down behind it and hopefully stay out of view of the path below.

Captain Baker was standing just a few feet in front of the log, shielded by a tree from the view of the path. Jennifer was the closest to the Captain followed by Joran and his wife, then the boys tucked back the furthest. Officer Gerod was crouched down just beyond the boys keeping watch on that far end. Jenn was able to hear both the Captain and his radio and tried to keep an ear out for the team's communications as well as the family next to her.

"Captain," she heard come back over the radio and she saw the tension in his posture relax slightly, but then more shots rang out.

"Colonel?" Baker called over his radio again, worry evident in his voice.

Jennifer watched him, holding her breath as she was sure he was, hoping for a quick response.

"Baker," came Reynolds' voice over the radio, "unknown number of hostiles. Take cover and hold your position."

"Yes, Sir," the Captain replied before looking over his shoulder and nodding at Jennifer.

Jenn nodded back to him and turned to make sure everyone stayed down. She listened to the sporadic spurts of P-90 fire in the distance and prayed the team was okay.

Jennifer heard a noise and some shifting behind her. She turned to quiet what she assumed was a frightened boy, but gasped at the sight behind her. A rough looking man was holding a knife to Raimor's throat and crumpled on the ground near his feet was the still form of Officer Garod.

"Not a sound," threatened the scruffy looking man. It came out in a whisper, but Jennifer didn't doubt the strength or resolve of the short and stocky man or his firm grasp on the young boy. His dark eyes constantly shifted between those hunkered down at the log and Capt. Baker who currently had his gun trained on the man.

Lady Adeya tried to hold in her startled cry of fear, not able to take her eyes off the knife at her son's throat.

"I said not a sound," the stocky man hissed as he lunged forward and backhanded Adeya, causing her head to snap to the side, the red sting immediately beginning to show on her face.

Sir Joran jumped to his feet, his response instinctive to protect, "Do not dare to…"

Joran's defensive response was met with an immediate, hard punch to the head, followed by a severe kick to his mid section once on the ground. "That means no talking," their captor growled taking a step or two back to his former location.

"Hey, hey," Baker tried to soothe in a voice just above a whisper. "Let's all just calm down here."

Dr. Keller's eyes had been glued to the unmoving form of Garod. She stared long and hard trying to catch movement indicating he was breathing and therefore alive. She was rewarded after a moment to see the slight rise indicating a breath, but the stillness was most likely an indicator of unconsciousness.

Jennifer's gaze swung back to the man holding the young boy and she saw a small scratch appear on Raimy's neck, the agitated man needed to be calmed and quickly. Addy was crying and Jennifer shifted slightly to allow herself to grasp the woman's hand. Matt and Joran had also slipped to huddle next to Addy. She noted that Joran's eye was beginning to swell shut.

"There is no time. Your people will not be distracted much longer. Put your weapon down," the stocky man demanded.

"I can't do that," Baker calmly replied. "Let the boy go and tell us what you want."

"No, throw your weapon over there," their captor insisted, nodding his head deeper into the woods, "or I will hurt the boy."

Jennifer didn't doubt the man would hurt Raimy, the small blood stain on the boys neck had grown slightly. She watched the silent tears rolling down Raimy's face as his eyes shifted between them all. Her heart ached at the fear she saw there and the hope he was searching their faces for.

Capt. Baker stood with his gun trained on the scruffy man for a full minute longer sizing up the situation, but he saw no way of rectifying it without Joran's son getting hurt. They already had one man lying on the ground, he couldn't risk himself getting hurt and leaving the royal family with no protection at all.

He lowered his gun and threw it into the woods, hopefully far enough that the man wouldn't bother to try and recover it. His only hope now was to keep the man talking for as long as possible, giving Reynolds and his team the time they needed to return.

"Why take the boy? Why not take me instead?" Baker asked with as much calm in his voice as possible. "I'm a Tau'ri, the planet I'm from is more advanced and wealthier than this one. Surely I'd be a bigger prize," Baker tried to reason.

"Nice try, but your efforts show that this boy is the best choice and it is what my boss has ordered," the stocky man replied smugly as he looked about his surroundings.

"He is only a young boy," Baker insisted, "surely you must know you will not get away with taking him. The other's" he said nodding up the path to indicate the rest of his team, "they will come after you."

The stocky man's face grew harder as he dismissed Baker's words.

"Please don't take my son," Adeya pleaded as she watched her son's captor start to back away from the group.

"Wait," Jennifer called watching the situation become dire, "this boy has a condition that requires regular medical attention."

The man didn't look convinced and proceeded to take steps backward away from the group.

"Why do you think we're here?" she continued quickly. "I'm a healer from another world they brought in to help care for the boy. How would your boss feel if you showed up with a sick boy?"

Raimy's captor paused for a moment and looked closely at the group. Obviously he didn't see a better idea then the one he was currently perpetrating.

"All the more reason," the stocky man retorted, as he began backing away again, "for your cooperation once my boss demands payment and safe passage for the boy's return."

Jennifer stood, causing the man to stop, "Then you'll need to take me with you," Jenn stated, glaring at the man, hoping he believed her. "He'll need medical assistance for his condition. He needs to have his vitals checked every hour and medication administered as warranted."

"Keller," she heard Baker hiss behind her, but she waved him off.

The captor studied them all, obviously weighing his options and possible outcomes before he relented. "Come quickly, but I can not guarantee your safety once we join the others."

"I need my bag," Jennifer stated as she turned and opened up the main compartment and pulled out two field dressings and a roll of medical tape for Gerod. She set them on the ground next to her bag and then zipped it shut again before hefting it to her shoulder.

"Hurry up, healer," the man called impatiently.

Jennifer adjusted her pack while looking at a very angry Captain Baker, "My name is not healer," she spoke up, "it's Gretel. And the boy's name is Hansel," she supplied as she finished cinching the straps of the bag on her back. Baker gave her a resigned nod before she turned back around and headed toward the man who was now her captor too.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Just in case there's anyone unfamiliar with the Story of Hansel & Gretel here is a short summary.
> 
> Hansel and Gretel are young kids who have an evil step-mother. Because there isn't enough food to feed the whole family she convinces their father to abandon the kids in the woods. Hansel hears of the plan and drops pebbles along the way and they are able to find their way home.
> 
> The second half of the story isn't important to my story, but goes kinda like this - the step-mother abandons them in the woods again, but Hansel is only able to drop bread crumbs which the birds eat. Later the two hungry children come upon a house made of gingerbread. The evil witch that owns the gingerbread house traps the kids. She makes Gretel clean while she fattens up Hansel in hopes of a good meal in the future. In the end Gretel kicks the witch into the oven meant for Hansel and they find their way home. In true fairy tale fashion they are met by a happy father who informs them that their step-mother is dead and they are now rich.


	4. Gretel

4 - Gretel

Jennifer walked through the woods with Raimy beside her and their captor behind them, urging them onward. She was trying to move as slowly as possible causing as much damage to their path as she could. She'd told Captain Baker she'd leave a trail, but the deeper they traversed the more worried she became that her trail wouldn't be discernable.

Jenn stopped walking and turned, "I need to check Hansel's vitals." She knew she had to humanize herself and Raimy to their captor. Give them names, remind the perpetrators that you were more than a means to an end.

"Keep moving," the stocky man commanded, waving the knife at her to remind her who was in control.

"Do you want him to have an episode before we reach the others?" Jennifer asked him sarcastically.

The man shook his head in irritation, but stopped none the less. "Make it quick."

Jennifer dug through her bag and pulled out a few items to help make her exam look authentic. She also used the time to inventory the contents of her bag. She needed something to help mark the trail they were taking beyond the broken branches and matted down foliage.

The contents though were limited to medical instruments and common medicines that she might need in the field. She also had a lot of crayons, a couple of coloring books, a change of clothes and a dozen or more lollipops. She took out some lollipops and put them in her pockets, along with a handful of crayons before doing a quick, although fake exam.

"Keep causing as much damage as possible as you walk," Jennifer whispered to Raimy as she bent over him to peer in one of his ears. "We need the others to be able to track us." Raimy gave her a timid nod and she smiled back hoping to reassure him.

Once she felt done with the _exam_ she packed her equipment away and handed a lollipop to Raimy. She nodded at him to take it and despite his confused look, he did.

"Would you like a lollipop?" Jennifer asked their captor innocently, as she pulled the wrapper off the one she was holding up in front of herself. She threw the wrapper on the ground and popped the sucker into her mouth.

The man looked at her doubtfully for a moment, but then hesitantly agreed. He took the lollipop she fished out of her pocket and smelled it a few times before it eventually made its way into his mouth. A moment of surprise registered on his face before he quickly recovered and urged them to get moving again.

Jennifer watched Raimy throw his wrapper to the ground as they walked. They hadn't gone but a few more steps when her radio crackled to life. "Colonel Reynolds, we have a problem here."

"Go ahead Captain."

Jennifer never got the chance to hear what Captain Baker was going to say. The captor grabbed at her radio - in his panic he had a tough time separating it from her clothing, but he quickly overcame that and pulled the radio from her. He threw it to the ground and smashed it to bits first with his booted foot, then with a rock for good measure.

"You will not contact them in any way," he ground out in anger before shoving them forward on the path.

Jennifer felt a little bit of her hope diminish with the loss of her radio, but she also had faith in the teams at the SGC. Her confidence in the Atlantis teams was great, but her time with the SGC teams had shown her their similarities in skills and luck. She was also fully aware that Cameron would be leading the SGC teams and wouldn't rest until he found her. _Please let it be soon, Cam_ , she thought, closing her eyes briefly and picturing him in her head, drawing strength and hope from the quick image.

XXX  


 _Shit, shit, shit_ , Colonel Reynolds ground out to himself as he paced in front of the Stargate waiting for Lt. Mooney to dial the gate. Not far from where he paced he could hear Lady Adeya crying and her husband trying to comfort her.

It had taken forty-five minutes to get his men and the ruling family to the gate. He'd wanted to go after the doctor and boy immediately, but with civilians with them as well as three injured men, he knew that getting everyone to safety and getting additional teams to help in the search and rescue was a priority.

Captain Baker had his stitched knife wound to the upper arm, but it wasn't serious and he knew that he wouldn't be able to talk the Captain out of returning. Lt. Bosco had been shot in the leg, while they'd been scouting ahead. At least it was a through and through Reynolds thought with a shake of his head at the luck they were having on this mission. Then there was the still unconscious Darsam security officer who'd been hit pretty hard in the head with a sharp rock. Baker had done a pretty good job dressing the wound, but the bandage was in need of changing again.

If it wasn't Keller missing out there he wouldn't be as worried, hell, if it'd been one of his men out there he'd even feel some relief and be glad that they'd made the move to protect the boy and not leave Raimor alone with the enemy. But it wasn't one of his men - a soldier, instead it was the soft-hearted doctor they'd all grown so protective of.

Then there was also the dread he had once he reached the other side of the gate. The dread of having to look Colonel Mitchell in the eye and tell him Keller wasn't with them… that she was still on that planet somewhere and they had no idea where.

The whoosh of the gate pulled Reynolds out of his agitated thoughts. "Lt. Mooney, Captain Baker, guard the gate. No one leaves this planet, absolutely no one. Keep trying to raise Dr. Keller on the radio every five minutes till we get back."

"Sir," they both replied in unison.

"Captain Baker?" Reynolds demanded.

"I'm good, Sir," Baker replied, knowing his CO was concerned with his stitches.

Reynolds nodded before bending to help Bosco to his feet. Reynolds and Joran each gabbed a side of the make-shift stretcher they'd constructed to carry Garod. Bosco waited till they were ready, then slipped his arm around his CO's shoulders for support as they limped their way through the Stargate with Lady Adeya and her son following behind.

XXX  


Colonel Mitchell took a seat behind his desk and motioned for Captain Jacobs to take a seat too. Cameron wasn't fond of evaluations, but these last few with Major Lorne's team had merely been a procedural exercise… a governmental paperwork must for all personnel.

"So," Cameron began, "you realize this is just a formality. Your record is exemplary and I've read the mission reports, your performance is commendable, soldier."

"I'd heard you read all the mission reports, sir," Jacobs said with a grin.

"I wouldn't say _all_ the reports," Mitchell shot back with a touch of defensiveness. His own team had given him a lot of ribbing about his mental consumption of all the past SG-1 mission reports. "I mean… the botany teams and the geology teams can be a bit dry most of them time," Mitchell defended himself. "And the cultural teams… well let's just say I have Dr. Jackson to brighten every one of my missions and the need for additional cultural reading is not high on my list of must reads." Cam shook his head as he finished his short rant.

"Feel that way myself when escorting those very teams, sir," Jacobs readily agreed.

"I think the fact that you're on Lorne's team actually about sums up your competence and dependability. Making an art of rescuing Sheppard's team and handling the… um… unusual circumstances that arise when escorting Dr. Keller has spotlighted you and your team mates' ability to improvise and think quickly in tough situations."

"Thank you, sir," Jacobs grinned, unable to hold back his laughter or pride at hearing a commanding officer praise his duty, "although we all thought of Keller-duty as an honor and challenge."

Mitchell had to chuckle at Capt. Jacobs choice of words, "She is that," he grinned to himself as he closed the file in front of him. "When are you due back on Atlantis?" Cam asked as he looked across his desk at the younger man.

"I'm scheduled to report back in…," Jacobs began, only to be interrupted by the unscheduled off-world activation warning.

Cameron and Jacobs took a moment to stare at each other, waiting for the warning sound to quiet down so they could continue. When the sound died down Jacobs began to open his mouth to continue speaking only to be interrupted again, this time by Walter's voice calling for Colonel Mitchell to report to the control room.

Mitchell felt the dread begin to engulf him as he tried not to allow his mind to wander to Jennifer and her mission with SG-3.

He and Jacobs were already jogging toward the control tower when he heard the additional call for a medical team to the gate room. His heart skipped a beat as he picked up his pace.

XXX  


Mitchell rounded the corner into the gate room to see Colonel Reynolds already halfway down the ramp with a hobbling Lieutenant Bosco on one side and dragging a stretcher with the help of an unknown man on the other side. When they made it to the end of the ramp the medical team helped situate the Lieutenant as well as another unknown unconscious man on the waiting gurneys before whisking them both away.

Cameron continued to watch the event horizon where a woman and child had emerged a moment before and were making their way down the ramp. When they reached the end of the ramp Cam's eyes shot back to the gate awaiting more of the team and missed Reynolds' signal to Walter to cut the gate.

Mitchell swung his gaze to Reynolds after the event horizon shut down, while in the background he heard a woman begin to cry in earnest, her wails becoming louder and louder, making Cam even more fearful.

"Colonel Reynolds, report," General Landry ordered loudly, trying to be heard over the crying as he approached.

Reynolds gave Cameron a look of regret before turning to his commanding officer. "Sir, Dr. Keller and the ruling family's son were taken during an ambush on our way back to the gate. I left Lt. Mooney and Captain Baker in control of the gate until our return."

General Landry closed his eyes and took a deep breath, the woman's cries hadn't subsided. "Briefing in ten minutes, Colonel Reynolds. SG-1, that includes you."

"Yes, sir," they all replied, Mitchell caught slightly off-guard having not noticed the arrival of the rest of his team.

"Walter," the General yelled up to the control room, "have teams nine and fourteen in the briefing room in ten minutes."

"Yes, sir," came a brisk reply over the speakers in the gate room.

Reynolds gave Mitchell one last nod before making his way over to Joran and his family, gesturing for a Marine in the room to follow him. Mitchell shadowed Reynolds, needing to hear anything that might include information about Jennifer.

Reynolds hunkered down in front of the woman kneeling on the floor rocking back and forth unable to contain her sobs. "Lady Adeya," he called gently. "Addy," he tried again when she didn't respond.

Mitchell watched the woman slowly lift her head and meet Reynolds' gaze.

"Addy, I need you and your family to go with this soldier to our infirmary. They'll look over your injuries quickly and then get you settled comfortably while we go find your son." Reynolds watched the woman shake her head no even as he was explaining what was needed.

"I will wait here for my Raimor," she stated firmly.

"Addy," Reynolds tried to soothe, yet remained firm, "Healer Keller is watching over your Raimy. She'll not allow any harm to come to him. These men," he said pointing blindly behind him, knowing that SG-1 would be standing there, "she is family to them, and we'll be leaving shortly to go back to Darsam and find them. We'll bring them both back safely."

Reynolds held Adeya's gaze waiting for his words to sink in and be processed. He watched her nod her head and allow Joran to lift her to her feet. As they began to walk towards the doorway, Lady Adeya took a step away from Joran and placed herself in front of Mitchell. She took a moment, looking directly into his eyes.

Cameron didn't know how or why, but he knew Lady Adeya was asking him a personal question. He nodded his head, a silent promise to bring the ones they loved back quickly and safely.


	5. Making Plans

5 – Making Plans

Jennifer looked back over her shoulder at the man pushing them on. He kept a hand on Raimy's shoulder as he called out directions to her from time to time. There was definitely a destination he was guiding them to, she just couldn't tell how close they were getting to it. She needed to make a move soon. She'd been obsessed with her thoughts of what to do… how to get away from the man holding them captive. She'd been able to slow their progress considerably with frequent stops to assess Raimy's "condition". She'd also stumbled and lost her footing several times on purpose hoping the stocky man would just think her clumsy while she hoped to not only slow their progress but also leave a trail that could be tracked.

"He's looking a little pale," Jennifer called out to the man with a firm grip on Raimy. "I need to check Hansel's vitals."

"No, we need to keep moving," he replied gruffly, although Jenn had noted that over the course of this journey he wasn't nearly as mean as when they'd started out. It probably was due to the fact that they hadn't struggled to escape, if anything he probably thought her a bit inept. That and maybe the three lollipops she'd already given him had sweetened him a bit.

"If you want him to make it wherever you're taking us, you'll let me assess him," she returned firmly.

The man gave out a huff, but pushed the boy toward Keller and nodded. Jenn had Raimy sit and she took his vitals absently as she went over her options in her head. Their captor was only a few feet behind her watching them closely, but she hoped not too closely.

Feeling Raimy's hand upon hers, stilling her movements she looked up and met his eyes. She saw the question and concern there and looked down as he indicated. She saw her hands were shaking slightly. Jenn looked back at the boy with a determined look and tried to convey her resolve to do _something_.

Jenn hesitated for one more moment realizing that despite the amount of sparring and training she'd done in the last few years, and despite being able to implement it in the field even, it was hard to initiate a fight… to jump someone. It was quite easy when standing before Ronon in the sparring room, when he lunged at you, to take up a stance to defend yourself. And even recently while training with Teal'c and other Marines she didn't typically have to make the first move. The few times she had been instructed to initiate the attacks had been intimidating and a little embarrassing actually.

Jennifer peaked over her shoulder again at the stocky man, hoping to gain a little confidence in what she was about to do. An opening would be nice too, a moment that yielded itself easily to an attack.

Putting away her supplies she took a deep, and hopefully calming, breath. "Keep clear, but if this goes badly… run," Jennifer whispered to the young boy as she finished securing her bag and began to stand.

Jennifer handed a lollipop to Raimy with a nod before turning around to face their captor. "Want another sucker?" she asked as she tossed one in the air between them, purposely throwing it short of the man.

He growled a bit at her, but didn't deny he wanted it. He gestured with the knife in his hand for the boy to come back toward him as he took a step forward to retrieve the lollipop that was on the ground in front of him.

Jennifer squeezed her eyes shut tight for a split second, her hands behind her back indicating to Raimy that he should stay put. Jenn watched the stocky man's move until his hand was just above the sucker about to grasp it. She held her breath and initiated a quick kick to the side of the man's head.

Caught off-guard he staggered, but his stocky frame gave him a good center of gravity and he was able to keep from falling over. Before he could straighten up she swung out with a kick to the opposite side of the head and while he was still off-balance she swept his legs from under him, ensuring he went down.

Jennifer ran to his side, relieved to find that between her kicks and his head hitting the ground hard, he was unconscious. She looked up, searching the immediate area for Raimy and was startled to find him at her side.

"You okay?" she asked, hoping she hadn't scared him to much.

His eyes were huge, "That was amazing, healer Jenn," he said, unable to hold back the grin spreading across his face. "I have never seen a woman fight a man like that."

"Where I come from, there are many who are much better than I am," she assured him. "I was lucky and he was surprised." Jennifer looked back at the unconscious man. "Now do we run or take the time to tie him up first in case he's not out for long? That's the question."

XXX  


Captain Jacobs stood a few feet back from Colonel Mitchell in the Gateroom when Reynolds had returned. He'd had a bit of an outsider feeling as he'd watched Daniel and Vala gather around Mitchell while Reynolds gave the General his report. Now that the family had followed one of the Marines out of the room he quickly approached the Colonel.

"Permission to join the SAR mission, Sir," he requested, standing at attention in front of Colonel Mitchell.

"Granted," Cameron quickly agreed, snapping into soldier mode. "Walter will help you relay a message to Atlantis – tell them you're gonna be late getting back, then meet us in the Armory to gear up."

"Yes, Sir," Jacobs responded before jogging to the stairs to the control room.

As Jacobs approached Sgt. Harriman he wasn't surprised to note he'd already hailed the Daedalus. The gate technicians on Atlantis were just as observant and never missed anything.

"This is Colonel Caldwell," Jacobs heard as the feed appeared on a screen overhead.

"Capt. Jacobs, Sir."

"What is it, Captain," Caldwell asked with the same annoyed gruffness that Jacobs remembered from the morning.

"I need to relay a message to Major Lorne, Sir."

Caldwell's demeanor didn't change, but Jacobs could swear he heard the mental irritated eye-roll over the video feed. "I'll be delayed in my return. I'm joining SG-1 on a SAR mission…," Capt. Jacobs hesitated. He knew the Colonel was known as a strict military man and didn't like to mince words, or even spend a lot of time with extra words, but Jacobs also wanted Major Lorne to know it was Dr. Keller that was missing. "Please tell him that I'm unsure of my ETA, but will return to Atlantis once Dr. Keller is found."

Jacobs had watched the Colonel begin to set his jaw as the explanation became lengthy, but at the mention of the former CMO, he did see a slight ease. "Done," Caldwell dismissed him with a nod.

Colonel Caldwell sat at the helm of the Daedalus for a moment absorbing the worrisome information he'd just been given from Capt. Jacobs. It was no secret that Caldwell preferred, even enjoyed a clear chain of command and protocol. It gave the man boundaries, authority and a sense of responsibility and security to work within.

His assignment to run shuttle between the SGC and Atlantis over four years ago had been an exercise in patience and diplomacy. The military mindset of the SGC was a comfort, what he was used to and what fit his personality. Atlantis on the other hand was his worst nightmare. A base run by civilians… he couldn't relate to scientists and engineers, professionals who experimented, created and had theories for what they did. For a man who relied on rules it was a chaotic mess that exasperated and maddened him.

Then there was the military contingent. Not only did Lt. Colonel Sheppard's rise to CO of the Atlantis base anger him in the beginning, but the relaxed military attitude seemed to constantly needle him. His stress level would rise in direct proportion to the Daedalus' proximity to Atlantis.

Over the years he'd grown accustomed to Atlantis. He wasn't sure exactly when, but somewhere between the too many close calls, loss of personnel and the self sacrifice attitude of those in the Pegasus Galaxy, he started to think of Atlantis and it's personnel as his.

He didn't think of it as home, but he had a very protective regard toward Atlantis and the Pegasus Galaxy. He hadn't slackened his military stance or attitude, it was ingrained in him, he wouldn't want anyone to get the impression he was getting soft on the inside, he'd just learned how to work within the Atlantis mindset.

Now was a perfect example. He was counting on the relaxed military attitude to get a message to both Major Lorne and Colonel Sheppard in the most expedited manner. Dr. Keller, who he considered one of their own, was missing and he'd do everything he could to help in her rescue. And the most he could do from his position was make sure that Sheppard and Lorne's teams were involved in the rescue and knew that time was of the essence.

XXX  


"This is Atlantis, Colonel Caldwell," Chuck said in response to a hail from the Daedalus.

"I need to speak with Colonel Sheppard."

Chuck grinned, Caldwell never bothered himself with any idle chit chat, just straight to the point. "I'll put you through on a secure com, Sir."

"That won't be necessary," Caldwell replied, startling the technician. Chuck looked over at another technician to be sure he'd heard correctly. Caldwell typically wanted privacy when speaking to any of the Department heads, but with Sheppard it was without exception.

"Is there a problem," Caldwell asked when Chuck didn't immediately connect him.

"No, Sir," he answered.

XXX  


"Colonel Sheppard, I have a call for you from Colonel Caldwell," John heard through his com. He looked up from the paperwork he was blindly staring at and caught Major Lorne's eye across the small office they shared. "Put him through, Chuck."

Lorne gave him an eye roll before looking back down at the paperwork he was actually working on. Evan knew the only reason the Colonel was even pretending to do paperwork was because his team was on stand-down until Teyla returned from visiting her people with Kanaan and Torren in the Pegasus Galaxy. Thankfully it was the last day of her three day visit and then things could go back to normal… Sheppard busy elsewhere and Lorne with the office, cd player and paperwork to himself.

"Colonel Caldwell, how can I help you?" John asked.

"Colonel," Caldwell acknowledged before continuing, "I have a message I need you to relay to Major Lorne from Capt. Jacobs."

"Go ahead," Sheppard replied, not hiding the bit of impatience in his voice. Although the two didn't butt heads nearly as often as they used to, John still found Caldwell's rigidity for protocol and chain of command irritating. John saw no reason why the Colonel couldn't just contact the Major directly or better yet, leave a message for the Major with Chuck.

Caldwell chose to ignore Sheppard's attitude like he did so often. They both had their command styles and although he felt Col. Sheppard's was too lax, the man always got the job done. "Capt. Jacobs wanted the Major to know he was joining SG-1 on a SAR mission and would be delayed in his return to Atlantis. He will return once Dr. Keller has been found."

Caldwell couldn't help but be satisfied at the moment of silence, although the levity of the situation quickly quelled the emotion.

"I will relay the message, Colonel," Sheppard answered as he and Lorne both stood and began making their way out of their office. "Colonel Caldwell, request transport to the SGC in five minutes."

"We'll be standing by, Colonel Sheppard," Caldwell replied. He'd known this would be the response and was glad there'd be no delay.

Sheppard quickly closed the com as he and Lorne jogged down the hall toward the armory. He reopened the com, "Ronon, Rodney."

"Sheppard," came back the deep voice of the Satedan.

"Need you and Rodney to go to the armory and gear up," Sheppard ordered as he and Lorne entered the transport and punched the level for the armory.

"Already a step ahead of you, Sheppard," Rodney declared. "We'll be waiting in the armory with the rest of Lorne's team. Hurry up," the scientist snapped.

Sheppard shook his head as he and Lorne picked up speed exiting the transporter. He wanted in on this mission and hoped they made it to the SGC in time.


	6. The Calvary

6 – The Calvary

SG-1 with the addition of Capt. Jacobs sat at the conference table in the briefing room while Reynolds, sitting at the head of the table, quickly went over what they knew. Cameron wished Teal'c hadn't left already, he was very valuable for tracking and such, but also Cam liked having his whole team about him when they were involved in an emergency.

Sam… he could really use her looks of reassurance right about now. Cameron tuned back into Reynolds briefing when he began to explain the lay of the land and the events that occurred as the boy and Jennifer were taken. Although he understood Jenn's need to protect the child, it didn't make him any happier that she'd basically volunteered to go with the kidnapper. He was a bit proud however when Reynolds explained her Hansel and Gretel message to Captain Baker, that is until Jackson leaned in close to him.

"Dr. Gretel," Jackson spoke as if trying it out to see how it sounded.

Cameron rolled his eyes and shook his head slightly as if exasperated, while on the inside he was thankful for what his team mate was trying to do.

General Landry had been pacing about the rather full room. Besides those at the table, teams 9 and 14 were standing around the room listening in on the briefing as well. When he'd first been offered the post to a secret base he'd been a bit eager. The fact that this secret base happened to contain the biggest secret the military was keeping should've been very rewarding, a real pat on the back and a reflection on his record.

What he'd inherited instead was basically a whole base he got to play father to. If he walked by a lab late at night he could always find several doctors, scientists and engineers who, not only had no idea what time it was, but most had no recollection of the last meal they'd eaten. There were also the kids he sent through the gate. He worried for the friends they'd meet and dreaded the bullies they might encounter. And then there were the nights he found himself pacing the control room for a team that'd missed curfew, waiting for them to make it home or at the very least, call in to explain their delay.

But this right here, hearing Dr. Jackson tease Lt. Colonel Mitchell with a nick name for his girlfriend, who was also one of his best doctors and the former CMO of Atlantis – this was what made him feel more like a father than a General of a secret military base. The constant teasing and antics among the personnel was entertaining and at times tiresome, trying his patience.

Movement in the gateroom below caught his attention. He watched as the soldiers on duty moved to the right. Landry moved to the conference table and tapped a button on the phone.

"Walter, what's going on in the gateroom?" he asked.

"Sir, the Daedalus will be beaming in a party of six in a moment."

Landry looked to Colonel Reynolds and raised his eyebrows in question.

"That about wraps it up, Sir," Reynolds assured him, wanting to get this mission going just as quickly as he knew Mitchell did.

"Well then, you all are dismissed," the General said with a nod of finality as the gateroom was beginning to glow with a white light, catching everyone's attention.

"What the hell," Landry breathed out as he saw Colonel Sheppard and company materialize, completely geared up for a mission. "Mitchell," he barked out, hoping for an explanation.

"Could only guess, Sir," Mitchell replied, although he was pretty sure it was a good guess. Cam could hear Walter welcoming their new arrivals to the SGC and he turned to follow the General down to the floor of the gateroom.

A part of Cameron felt a bit territorial, Dr. Keller was their's now. Part of the SGC and… well… his. She was his to protect and worry about, but he quickly admonished himself. Jennifer genuinely cared for, and was cared for by, these men. They were here to help and he wasn't about to deny them, anymore than he was willing to sit on the sidelines himself.

XXX  


"Godspeed," General Landry called to the teams from the control room above as the Stargate began to dial. He'd dismissed teams 9 and 14 when he'd granted the Atlantis teams permission to join in the search and rescue, but he'd ordered them to remain on alert to possibly join the SAR mission if needed.

Colonel Reynolds gave a sidelong look at Colonel Sheppard and then beyond to the rest of his team as well as Lorne's team. Other than a few missions with Major Lorne, this would be his first time working with either team and he was impressed with how quickly they'd donned their gear and arrived at the SGC. "Pretty confident the General would allow you to join the mission," he stated with a grin while they waited for the chevrons to lock into place.

Sheppard rocked heel to toe a few times, "Well, we do have our own Stargate, so if things hadn't worked out…" John let the sentence drop as he grinned back at the Colonel.

Reynolds had to roll his eyes and grin back at the Atlantis Colonel even though he knew the man was serious. Although Reynolds considered Dr. Keller one of their own now, obviously these teams still felt the same. Reynolds flicked a glance across the room at Mitchell trying to gage how the man was doing, but his stance and expression gave nothing away but his determination.

XXX  


Major Lorne stood next to Colonel Mitchell at the end of the ramp in the gateroom waiting for the wormhole to spring to life. There were many conversations going on around them with the noise of the chevrons locking into place in the background. Evan stole a glance at Mitchell, the man's tense gaze locked on the grinding gate.

He completely understood the concentration and the resolve in the man's features. He hated the idea of Jennifer and the child out there without them. Hell… Lorne and his men hated the idea of Jenn being out on a mission without his team, period. He'd worked with Colonel Reynolds on several occasions when he was stationed at the SGC before his transfer to Atlantis. He knew Reynolds' team probably felt the same way his did, Evan guessed it had something to do with her age and gender, but the rest was all Keller.

"So," Lorne began, hoping to pull Cameron out of his trance. They'd become friends because of Jenn, not close friends, but more than acquaintances. "How many times does this make?" Evan asked, shooting the Colonel a knowing look.

Cameron let out his breath as he gave a small smirk at Lorne, "Sixth time in four months." He shook his head slightly while fixing his gaze back on the rotating Stargate. As it finally sprang to life he turned back to Lorne while the teams began moving up the ramp, "Wouldn't mind being the knight in shining armor so much if I didn't need a team of Marines with me when I performed the dashing deed," Cameron remarked before nodding toward the gate and falling into step behind the other teams heading up the ramp.

Lorne chuckled at the Colonel's assessment as he followed him through the event horizon. The mood on the other side was immediately subdued as their training took over.

"Captain Baker, Lt. Mooney," Mitchell called out to Reynolds' men, "report."

"No activity, sir," Baker supplied.

"Lt. Sanchez and Lt. Jeffries will be joining you, set up a perimeter around the gate, but out of sight. No one leaves this planet," Mitchell commanded.

Reynolds' men and Lorne's two men nodded and headed out to comply. Colonel Mitchell turned to Reynolds and nodded at him, turning over the next step to him.

"Everyone else," Colonel Reynolds called looking at the odd grouping left in front of the gate, "this way," he instructed as he set out on the path leading toward the town three miles away. The teams stopped short not even five seconds later as a muffled, far off, yet unique sound reached their ears.

"Does she have a weapon?" Mitchell quietly inquired in the utter silence that now surrounded them.

"No," Reynolds stated, letting out the breath he'd been holding, while his ears strained for any sound at all.

Ronon let out a growl as he took off down the path, the teams picking up the pace to keep up with him. They should all be going about this more cautiously, but the sound of gunfire so far in the distance had them worried about the time they had left to make a difference in the outcome.

XXX  


Jennifer stared at the man she'd knocked unconscious, still amazed she'd actually done it. She checked his vitals to assure herself that he was still alive. It was the first time she'd actually knocked someone unconscious and she wasn't sure if the severity of the blow determined the length of time unconscious or not, but she wanted to make sure she and Raimy made it away from the man before he regained consciousness.

She quickly removed the knife from his hand before beginning to wrap duct tape around his wrists. She made sure to wrap it atop itself with several passes to ensure he couldn't gnaw his way out anytime soon.

"My father always said that you could fix anything with duct tape," Jenn explained with a lite chuckle. "I don't think he had subduing a captor in mind all the times he told me that though." Jennifer wrapped the stocky man's ankles just as tightly and thoroughly, then began to gingerly check his pockets. All she found was a sheath for the knife.

"Cam is _so_ not going to be happy with all of this," Jennifer said with a frown as she tried to drag the man to the nearest tree. "My only saving grace will be that we aren't hurt," Jennifer said making eye contact with Raimy, "and that we're no longer in danger. At least not at the moment."

Jennifer gestured for Raimy to bring the tape and knife to her as she propped the man in a sitting position against the tree.

"Is Cam your mate?" Raimor asked curiously while he watched healer Jenn wrap the silver band around the tree and around the man's shoulders, securing the man slumped against the tree.

Jennifer paused momentarily, not comfortable with any term she could think of to use for Cameron. While boyfriend seemed a little juvenile, _mate_ seemed a bit too committed. Although she felt that level of commitment for Cam and she was pretty sure he did also, it wasn't something that they'd made official.

"Well… he's the one that loves me," she began as she finished duct taping the man to the tree and started to gather up the contents of her bag, "and he's the one who'll be coming for us."

Raimy knelt down beside Jenn and helped her gather up the supplies that she'd placed outside the bag while looking for anything she could use to tie the man up. "That sounds like a mate," he stated rather simply.

Jennifer grinned at the boy, "Yes it does."

A noise behind them caught her attention, but rather than turn to see what had caused it she motioned for Raimy to hide the knife with a wave of her hand and a hard look that she was sure showed her fear. She was infinitely glad the boy was intuitive both now and during this entire ordeal.

Jennifer reached for his hand once the bag was secured, the knife safely in a side pocket and slowly stood, turning around. She hadn't heard the noise again, and was hoping to turn and see nothing, but the hairs on the back of her neck were preparing her for the worst. As she scanned the area her eyes quickly landed on three men standing a few yards away watching the two of them. The man in front had a gun leveled at them.

He seemed to be waiting for her to acknowledge his presence. He had the same stocky type build as the man she'd just tied up, but no other resemblance. He also had longer hair, very beady eyes and an authoritative air about him. While the man she'd tied up had been mean, especially in the beginning, this man chilled her with his malicious stare. The other two men with him were taller and looked upon her more as if trying to figure out a puzzle.

Jennifer cleared her throat and licked her lips. Her mind raced with what to say or do next. "Gentlemen… umm, could you point us in the direction of town. We're a bit turned around and having a bad day."

She saw no sympathy in the leader's eyes, but rather mirth as he grinned at her with a sneer. "Your day has just gotten a little worse it looks like." He motioned for her to join them with a few waves of his gun.

After Jennifer and Raimor had moved to the side and toward the two men with him, the leader walked up to the unconscious man they'd tied up. "Daryn here was only supposed to bring the boy," he said angrily as he lifted his gun and shot the man in the chest.

Raimy's hand tightened on hers as he turned into her burying his face in her side. The sound and sight before her had jerked her body and she reacted by pulling the boy in tighter to her side hoping to protect him in any way she could.

She had an overwhelming need to speak up and defend the dead man. To tell this vicious leader that he'd only brought her along for the boy's health… because she was a healer. Jennifer gritted her teeth and held her tongue though. Ronon had told her, while teaching her how to defend herself, that you don't reveal anything to your enemy unless it's to your advantage. Right now, keeping her thoughts to herself and presenting a scared and agreeable front to their new captors seemed the better strategy.


	7. Search

7 - Search

"This is where I left them with Captain Baker while we scouted the stretch of path we just came through," Colonel Reynolds explained as the teams came to a halt on the path.

Reynolds wandered off the path to the spot he knew the Captain and his charges had all stood to wait for his all clear signal. The Atlantis men had fanned out and begun searching the woods for clues, while the SGC men were searching along the original path. He knew in his head it wasn't his fault Keller was missing. His senses had pricked up and he'd known something was wrong… that they were no longer alone. That was the whole reason he'd had the Captain stay while the rest of his team checked out the path ahead. He'd played right into the enemy's hands and now Jennifer and Raimor were at their mercy.

Reynolds nearly jumped a foot when he heard Mitchell's low voice.

"It's not your fault, you know," Cameron began, knowing that the Colonel would be beating himself up over his decisions. "You left them here in an attempt to keep them safe." Cameron stopped looking around the matted down area and looked Colonel Reynolds' in the eye. "Just like she was trying to protect the boy. It's what we all do, attempt to protect the weak."

Reynold's nodded as they were joined by Colonel Sheppard.

"Sheppard," the Colonels heard Ronon bark over the radios.

"Hold on, buddy," Sheppard radioed back to the Satedan, wishing the man had just an ounce of patience sometimes. "He's picked up their trail," John relayed with a smirk knowing that Ronon's implied demand was heard by both Colonels.

Mitchell turned back to the path. "Colonel Reynolds, take Daniel, Vala and Capt. Jacobs and head to the town. Meet up with their local security and scour the town for information. Report anything you find immediately. Hopefully one of the locals knows something useful. Sheppard, your team and Major Lorne are with me. We'll try to track them through the woods and report anything we find. Move out."

XXX  


Fifteen minutes passed for the men following the trail through the woods. Mitchell was grateful to have the Satedan with them knowing he had wicked tracking skills. He'd had to laugh though because at the moment he thought even Daniel would be able to track Jenn. True to her word she'd left a path that was easy to follow. Branches were bent back, the ground scuffed up and plant life trampled like a cow got loose in his momma's flower bed.

Cam noticed that Ronon had come to a stop ahead of him and was fingering something he'd found on the ground.

Sheppard plucked it from Ronon's hand and smirked at Mitchell, "Seems our doctor has become a litter bug of sorts."

Mitchell looked down at the wrapper Sheppard handed him. It was indeed litter from a lollipop. Cam knew she carried them in her medical bags for the kids she encountered off-world. "Living up to the true Gretel name," he said with a smile, "glad to know the situation wasn't too bad if she was able to unwrap lollipops.

"Gretel?" Rodney asked as he peered at the wrapper.

"That's right," Mitchell answered, "you all weren't at the briefing. Jenn told her captor that her name was Gretel and that the…,"

"The boy's name was Hansel?" Lorne finished with a laugh when Cameron nodded his head. "Good girl," the Major praised aloud as he and the rest of the Atlantis team shared looks of pride. It was a little disconcerting to see the grin on the Satedan's face before he turned back around and began walking. Cameron shoved the wrapper into his pocket and fell into step in front of Major Lorne who was taking up their six.

From behind him Lorne spoke up, "So have you attempted to ban her from missions yet?"

Mitchell threw a glance over his shoulder at the Major before facing forward and nodding his head in accent. "It's one thing to read about her missions in reports from Atlantis," Cam spoke aloud, "where I already know she'd made it back safe and sound. It's completely another to be pacing in the gateroom, waiting for the 'safe and sound' part."

"Tell me about it," Lorne laughed. "How'd that go over?" When Mitchell didn't answer him he spoke up again, "She threaten to leave you?"

"Not exactly," the Colonel hedged, then shook his head without turning around. "She informed me that Atlantis had its own Stargate and that maybe she'd get a transfer back. She could still see me some weekends or vacations." Mitchell heard the laughter behind him and a couple snickers ahead of him. He turned and glared at Lorne.

Lorne held up his hands in front of himself, "Hey, only laughing because we've been there." Cam continued to glare at him while walking backwards so Lorne spoke up again, although the laughter wouldn't leave his voice, "Not the moving and continuing to date part. For us it was a threat of a few uncomfortable additions to the post-mission physicals." Lorne shuddered briefly before grinning again, "We all shut up pretty damn quick."

Cameron couldn't help but grin as he turned back around and faced forward only to find Rodney facing him with a grin. He gave the scientist a glare, but then looked down at Rodney's proffered hand. In it were two more wrappers and three small, white sticks. McKay cleared his throat, "Looks like their captor has a sweet tooth too."

XXX  


Reynolds led his team to the government building in town and through it to the wing that served as living quarters for the governing family of Darsam. They were met there by the local lead security officer, Granthum. The Colonel quickly brought the man up to speed on what had occurred in the last three hours, both on their way to the gate and their current search and rescue efforts.

"Have you discovered anything useful?" Reynolds asked.

Granthum motioned for them to follow him over to the bodies, he pulled back a sheet that was covering them, pointing at each of the dead men. "This one on the left only had a knife on him, and the one on the right was carrying the gun," he said as he nodded toward the weapons near the body.

He continued, "The local barkeep in town recognized the more ragged looking man as one of two off-worlders that worked for a local man during the harvest season. My officers have gone to collect the farmer to see what he knows of these men."

Dr. Jackson watched Vala walk an arc around the bodies and knew that she'd be speaking her mind shortly. Daniel looked over at Reynolds and watched the Colonel raise his eyebrows with a slight cringe to his features. Daniel refrained from smirking by focusing on the dead bodies at their feet.

"So… nothing else in their pockets or on their person?" Jackson asked.

"I'm afraid only the weapons," Granthum assured him.

"Well," Vala began her assessment, "my guess would be either regular, run of the mill mercenaries, or regular, run of the mill mercenaries trying to buy their way into the Lucian alliance."

Granthum looked at Vala quizzically, "Alliance?"

"Yes, um… they're an organized group of thugs who prey on those weaker for territorial and financial gain," she began, hands on hips as she explained. She turned toward Capt. Jacobs, "much like what I've read about the gangs on Earth."

Reynolds watched Vala slide into full lecture mode. He looked at Daniel and saw a look of concentrated patience and almost grinned. The woman could be a bit much to handle even if she was right a lot of the time. His glance slid to Capt. Jacobs and Granthum and saw that both were immersed in her explanation and tuned back in himself.

"The alliance has grown to such a size they can be picky about who they let into their little club." Her eyes drifted down to the two on the floor, "I would say that this group of mercenaries pulled this job in hopes of earning their way into the Lucian alliance."

Vala glanced around the room and after a periphery look wandered away from the group to take a closer look about the room.

"Whatcha doin'?" Daniel asked as he slid up along side Vala, blocking her progression around the room.

Vala cast a glance back at the security officer, Reynolds and Capt. Jacobs before leaning in towards Daniel and lowering her voice. "Obviously the men who have the boy and Jennifer think these people have some kind of treasure that would be of value to the Lucian alliance. I'm just wondering what it might be."

"Vala," Daniel admonished.

"What, I'm not touching anything. I'm just looking," she insisted in a hushed tone. "I need something to keep me busy until that farmer gets here."

Daniel let out an exasperated breath and wished for the farmer to hurry.

XXX  


Jennifer and Raimor sat at a crude looking picnic table in the mercenaries camp. Jenn quickly assessed their surroundings. It looked temporary and she'd been quite relieved when they weren't ushered onto a ship. She figured the chances of being found and rescued were the highest the longer they stayed on the planet.

Jennifer looked over at the tall man that had been keeping an eye on them since they'd arrived at the camp. He'd been one of the three that had recaptured them in the woods. He was several yards away sitting upon a log whittling with his knife, seemingly uninterested in their conversation.

Jennifer had only seen one other man besides the three they'd arrived with, but the leader had sent him off on an errand almost right away upon their arrival. That put their numbers to at least 4 at the moment.

"Raimy, you have any idea where we are?" the doctor whispered, hoping he wasn't as turned around as she was.

"Certainly. I have been by this way with my father many times for hunt season," the boy relayed excitedly.

"Try not to let them realize you know where we are." Jennifer looked about the camp but found no one paying any attention to them. "If we get a chance to get free, we need to be ready to run. I want them to feel like they don't have to watch us like a hawk." Raimy looked like he was sorting out her words so she quickly added "it means closely."

Raimor caught sight of a man exiting a tent behind healer Jenn's back and walking toward them. He gently kicked at her leg under the table to alert her to their approaching visitor.

The second of the two taller men that had startled them in the woods dropped two plates onto the table. "Eat," he ordered them.

"Our hands are bound," Jennifer reminded him, holding her hands up toward him.

"Figure it out," he replied before making his way back into the tent.

They had to try several techniques before finding a way to eat with bound hands, but were eventually successful. As they were just finishing their meals a man came running into the camp yelling for Pharon over and over. Jennifer mentally added another bad guy to her list bringing the number to 5, so far.

The leader came out of one of the tents and called for calm. The runner gave Jennifer a long glance before turning back to Pharon and relaying something in a hushed voice. Whatever it was seemed to have him slightly panicked. The leader growled loudly before turning and glaring at Jennifer.

Pharon angrily barked orders to the runner and the whittler, "Put the boy in the cage we constructed, then bring her to me."


	8. Not Alone

8 - Not Alone

"Colonel Mitchell this is Captain Baker," the Marine called over the radio as he made his pass in front of the gate. His current team which consisted of his team mate Lt. Mooney as well as two men from Major Lorne's team, Lt. Jeffries and Sanchez, had begun fifteen minute cycles of the three positions they'd taken guarding the gate. This allowed them to keep radio silence and be sure that each member of the team was accounted for.

This also gave each team member about five minutes when moving between positions to do a little scouting to be assured nothing had changed in their surroundings.

At this time it was giving the Captain a chance to make this radio call when he was in the best position to not be overheard.

"Mitchell here."

"Sir, we are secure here at the gate. We're not alone though. We've identified one hostile. He is aware of our presence, but seems to be simply monitoring the situation. There is evidence to support the idea that there were two of them monitoring the gate actively not long ago. Keller's captors may know of our presence on the planet, sir," Baker recapped.

"Does he know we're aware of his existence, Captain?"

"No, sir. Would you like us to detain him?"

"No. If he shows signs of leaving have two of your men follow him. He may lead us to these thugs."

"Yes, sir," Baker replied, satisfied that the Colonel's plan was exactly what he was hoping for. He really wanted to see Dr. Keller found quickly, but he also wanted to see each of the men responsible captured.

XXX  


Capt. Jacobs was starting to get antsy. They'd gone over all the information Granthum, the security officer, had been able to supply them and relayed it all to Colonel Mitchell and the team he was with. Now it was just waiting for the farmer to come in and give them whatever information he could about the dead men on the ground.

During their wait Vala was trying to entertain them with stories of different dealings she'd had with the Lucian alliance. The first story of course being how she and Jackson met and he screwed the Lucian alliance over, without even knowing it.

Jacobs enjoyed watching the scientist squirm and protest throughout her retelling, but he wished they were moving forward rather than sitting on their hands. Jacobs tuned out while the two began to bicker, his attention caught by Granthum and another man entering the room from the far side.

XXX  


Jennifer stood inside one of the tents with the leader as he paced back and forth clearly agitated. He finally came to a stop in front of her and gave her a hard glare.

"Who are you?" Pharon demanded.

Jennifer hesitated, unsure how to answer the question. The man was clearly upset and she wished she knew what he'd been told by the man who'd come running into the camp. "A friend of the family."

"No," Pharon shouted, "where are you from? How did you come to be kidnapped with the boy?"

"I'm Raimy's doctor. He hasn't been well lately," Jennifer tried again, knowing it wasn't going to work either. Unless she knew what he knew she couldn't afford to say much.

Pharon walked up to within a few inches of her, "Who. Are. You?" he yelled, his eyes bulging to such a degree that for a moment Jennifer forgot the question as she watched them.

"Just a healer and friend of the boys and their family," she said just above a whisper. Jennifer's fear of what the man was capable of doing making it hard for her to speak.

The angry leader struck out, hitting her in the face viciously, trying to appease his anger. "You wear the clothing of the Tau'ri… that of SG1." The last part he almost spat out, his distaste was so great. He nodded at one of his men in the room.

Jennifer had no time to anticipate what the nod was about before she found herself being patted down and none too efficiently. She pulled away from the taller man's hands when they became slower and too friendly.

"Do you have some type of tracking device or radio?" Pharon demanded. "Maybe a weapon?"

"No, the first man to take us against our will smashed the radio." Jennifer squared her shoulders and looked the leader in the eye, "If there was a device you'd be the one bound at this time… but it's just a matter of time."

The leader struck her hard in the face again. Jennifer held her new injury as best as she could with her hands bound. "Do not be so pleased," Pharon ranted, "SG1 would be an even bigger feat than the compensation for the return of the boy."

Pharon stepped back and paced for a moment. He needed to think, plan even. Pulling off a successful kidnapping and ransom would earn him some favor with the Lucians, but bringing in SG1 dead or alive would guarantee him entry, maybe even his own crew and territory. Movement caught his eye and he frowned realizing that he'd forgotten the woman was still here.

"Take her to the cage," he ordered before turning to the Tau'ri woman. "It will be a tight fit," he sneered, "only expected to have it hold a small boy."

Pharon looked up and nodded his order to take her away and ordered the tall man to send in Galen, his man from the gate.

A plan was forming quickly in Pharon's mind. He only had five men besides himself so they'd have to be careful and it'd need to be some type of ambush again. This ambush though didn't necessarily need any survivors so it wouldn't be as risky. The ransom note should bring the players he needed to the gate for the trade-off. All he needed to do was make the trade and leave through the gate with SG1. The Tau'ri's need to protect and save would be their undoing when they gave themselves up to save the woman and boy. If that didn't work he just needed to have his men in position to take them down and then drag their dead bodies through the gate.

It was well know that the Lucian Alliance hated SG-1… had even put out a bounty on their heads at one time. Bringing them in would be a coup and a guarantee of his place within their alliance.

His scheming was cut short when Galen came quickly into the tent. "You sent for me?" he asked respectfully.

"Yes, I need you to go back to the gate. I need to know how many came through the gate and if any others have arrived. I also want to know how many are guarding the gate. I will expect you to report back to me as soon as possible. We will ready the camp for our departure once you've returned." Pharon waved him away, "Be quick."

XXX  


Galen left the tent quickly, but once out of Pharon's site he slowed his pace. His mind was whirling too quickly to think clearly. When he'd seen the Tau'ri come through the gate his breath had caught. It hadn't crossed his mind that he'd have to face SG-1 when he and his friend had joined this band of thieves. He and his buddy had lost much and had just been looking for a way to provide for their families, but now he found himself in over his head.

He looked toward the cage as he approached it on the edge of the camp and saw the look of fear on the boy's face. He looked at the woman and saw not only the fear, but the look of determination that settled there immediately and a course of action quickly formed in his mind.

XXX  


Granthum led the farmer over to the bodies lying on the floor. He could feel the others making their way over too, but his main concern was the farmer in front of him and the information he could give them. Granthum took great pride in the general safety found in Darsam. Having crime occurring in his town was maddening for him, but having it happen to the ruling family was just unacceptable. His people needed this to be dealt with quickly and he personally needed to see these men brought to justice.

Granthum watched the farmer wince at his first good glance at the dead men, but was proud to see the man push through and give them both a good stare.

"This one," the local pointed to the man who'd held the knife, "he and another worked for me during the gathering season. Hard worker," he finished, shaking his head, not understanding how it had come to this for the dead man.

"How about the other man?" Granthum asked.

"No, haven't seen him before." The farmer looked at the group gathered before looking back at the security officer. "Raimor or the healer?"

Reynolds always found it amazing that even in a technology challenged town such as Darsam, the news traveled just as fast as it did at the SGC.

Granthum shook his head in the negative. "These here with me," the security officer said indicating the team members now gathered around the bodies, "are from the healer's world. The ruling family went through the Stargate to the Tau'ri home world for safety reasons and more Tau'ri are in the woods searching for the healer and young Raimor."

Colonel Reynolds took a step closer to gain everyone's attention. "Is there anything else you can tell us about this man?"

The farmer looked at Reynolds thoughtfully for a minute before snapping back to the present excitedly. "I do know where he and his friend camped while working for me. I can take you there."

Reynolds nodded at the team and they quickly gathered up their gear, but before they could head out a young boy came racing into the room, not stopping until he was directly in front of Granthum.

Thinking fast Dr. Jackson grabbed at the sheet on the ground to pull over the bodies. When Jacobs realized his intention he grabbed a side of the sheet to speed up the process.

The boy gave a piece of paper to Granthum which he quickly scanned through before looking up at the group waiting. "It is a ransom note. They are asking for a great deal of compensation as well as safe passage through the gate. If this occurs they'll let the boy and woman go at the gate."

"How does your world feel about giving in to ransom demands?" Daniel asked, wondering a bit at what the compensation would be.

"To be honest, Dr. Jackson, it is not something that we've had to deal with in the past," Granthum admitted. "However, this is something that we'll have to discuss with Sir Joran before proceeding either way."

Jackson nodded his head, knowing that with Sir Joran's own son's life in the balance, he might very well lean toward granting the compensation to protect his son.

On the way out Granthum stopped and handed the note to one of his men, giving him instructions before following the farmer as he led the way out of the government building and through the town.


	9. Get Set

9 – Get Set

Galen approached the small cage that held the woman and the boy. With no room to stand, it was a tight fit, each sitting side by side touching at the hip, knees bent due to the lack of room. They'd positioned themselves with their backs to the camp which would serve him well.

Galen pulled a knife from his pocket and reached inside the cage toward Jennifer. He watched her pull away and grew more anxious. No one was around at the moment, but he knew he only had one or two minutes tops before someone returned to keep watch over the pair. "Extend your hands so I can free them," he said impatiently.

Jennifer tentatively moved her hands toward the man she'd seen run into the camp earlier. "What are you doing?"

"I'm cutting you free," he whispered as he worked the dull knife over the straps holding her hands together.

"Why?" Jennifer asked as her own eyes now darted about the camp site behind her, watching for anyone approaching.

"I watched SG1 come through the gate," he explained in a hurried voice as he moved to the door of the cage rather than to the boy's bindings. The knife was in desperate need of sharpening and he knew he was about out of time. "They saved my village when the Ori came. I don't wish to become their enemy."

Galen finished cutting through the bindings on the cage and handed the knife to the woman. He looked about the camp site again as panic began to set in. "I must go or we will all be caught. Wait for your first good moment of escape and take it. Be sure it is within the hour, for Pharon will be quite angry when he realizes I am not returning. There are three others besides him. I'm sorry, but I must go now."

Jennifer watched the man quickly move into the woods, she hadn't even had time to thank him in his haste to leave. The fear in her made her want to bolt that very instance and cut Raimy free once they were in the clear, but Jennifer knew that wasn't thinking smart. They might only get one chance, and they needed to both be ready to make the most of it and have a plan.

"Why are we not leaving?" Raimy whispered quickly, the alarm evident in his voice. He so wanted this ordeal to be over so he could see his parents again. He was trying to be brave for healer Jenn, but he didn't know how much longer he could keep from crying.

"We will leave, Raimy," Jennifer promised him, hoping to put off his fears. "I first need to cut you free and we need to have a plan. Once we open this door they'll know we're free and we won't get this chance again." As she finished this statement a man moved from a tent back to the crude picnic table and she was glad she'd kept her flight response in check. They wouldn't have made it far if they'd begun their escape already.

Raimy turned his head to see the man, then turned back and nodded at her. He opened his eyes wide hoping to keep the tears pooling in his eyes from spilling over.

Jennifer watched his struggle and her heart broke for him, "Raim, listen to me," she whispered, tilting her head toward his until they touched, offering what comfort she could. "The friend that taught me to fight?" Jennifer waited for his slight nod and then continued as she slowly and as inconspicuously as possible began to run the blade across his bindings. "He told me that when he was on the run trying to avoid capture by his enemies, he learned a valuable lesson. Never let your guard down and never think about anything except what you should do next and next and next. He avoided capture for seven years before he was finally rescued. You and I can do this together… we now know that my Cam is already on his way." Just the mention of Cam's name aloud made her throat close up a little, but she was determined to stay strong for Raimy's sake.

Jennifer watched Raimy nod in understanding. "So now," she continued as she slowly slid the knife into her BDU pocket, "we need to plan what we're going to do next and next and next as quickly as possible and then we need to be ready to leave the very next time they leave us alone."

Raimy sniffed as the pooling in his eyes receded. He desperately wanted his mom, but he was relieved he wasn't there alone.

"I need you to clasp your hands together so it looks as if they're still bound. Can you do that for me?" she whispered, smiling as he got his emotions under control and nodded his head very carefully.

"Good boy, Raim. Now is there anything you can tell me about where we are that these men probably don't know?" Jenn quietly asked as she kept an eye on the man at the table as well as the surrounding camp site.

"We are quite a ways from town and even further from the ring. There is a river nearby and we used to cross it when my father would take us on the hunt," Raimor quickly explained.

"Are there any caves that we could hide in that these men would have trouble finding or maybe a trail that leads back to town, a way they wouldn't think of?" Jennifer inquired hoping to hear something that'd spark a plan soon.

"There is a shelter we stayed in for the duration of the hunt. It is a little secluded to keep the animals from being frightened by our presence. I think I could find it, but we must cross the river and walk a ways." The boy looked at Jennifer hoping he'd been helpful.

Jennifer knew it was just a matter of time before Cam and SG1 arrived at this camp site to rescue them. She had complete faith they'd be able to find them. Teal'c was an excellent tracker she'd been told and assumed his skills were similar to Ronon's. The problem was she didn't know how long before they'd get there and waiting seemed like a bad idea. Escaping would hopefully buy them the time Cam needed to find them, but this time she couldn't leave a trail.

Going toward the gate seemed like a bad idea. Raimy had said it was a long ways away and she was sure that Pharon would assume it to be her destination. He probably knew his way there pretty well since it was most likely his own escape plan when the time came.

Heading toward the town seemed to be equally as daunting. Jennifer knew Cam and Reynolds would be coming through the woods for them since she'd left Baker with the Hansel and Gretel remark. She also knew Pharon had dispatched someone to the town and she'd not seen him return yet. She didn't want to chance meeting up with the bad guys on the way.

Jennifer reached back in her pocket to reassure herself the knife was still secure. Her fingers brushed across the crayons still there from earlier and a plan began to form.

XXX  


Tracking Doc had been easy so far. Ronon was pretty sure Rodney could've tracked her with the amount of clues she'd left behind. He'd already collected nine more sticks and wrappers from the lollipops she carried that Sheppard liked. She'd also stopped rather frequently and trampled the ground down pretty well. He smirked for a second, proud of the amount she'd learned since Kiryk had kidnapped her. He would've relished more of a challenge tracking, but since it involved Keller he was glad he didn't need to use the full measure of his skills.

Ronon suddenly felt that tingle in his body that announced something wasn't right.

Colonel Sheppard noticed the tensing in Ronon's body in front of him as the man slowed his pace to more of a stealth pattern. He gave a quick signal behind him and was rewarded with instant silence. The group of five moved forward cautiously. As they neared a very small opening in the woods Sheppard moved abreast of Ronon and Cam, Lorne and Rodney tucked in close behind them, each keeping a keen eye on the woods around them.

Ronon continued to steal forward and Cam had to admire the big guy's ability to creep along silently, like a cat about to pounce. They entered the small clearing and Ronon immediately straightened and resumed a regular stride as he moved toward a tree on their left.

As Lorne got closer he began to laugh, "There's a use of hundred-mile-an-hour tape I never thought I'd see Doc use."

Cam had to shake his head in admiration at what appeared to be Jenn's resourcefulness. Just ahead he could see a tree with the obvious body of a sitting man on the far side and the duct tap wound round the body and tree just a short distance away. He watched Ronon share a look with Lorne then heard each mutter 'that's my girl'. Cam knew it was stupid to have even an ounce of jealousy in respect to these men, but he was definitely not prepared to witness the close relationship and bond they had with _his_ girl, Jenn.

When his eye was caught by Lorne's knowing look and accompanied by a smirk that held no apology, Cam gave him a nod. He already knew her experiences with this group were what was keeping her safe even now.

While the military men had all been scouring the ground and woods leading up to the tree Rodney rounded it to get a better look at Jennifer's captor. He'd always lumped her in with other female scientists and doctors as being inept outside the lab… like he'd been for a long time even after being on Sheppard's team. And that was how she'd been for quite a while, but in the last year and more she'd really become more competent in the field and this was just another example of her growth. He was just as proud of her as the other guys, he just had a healthier fear of her boyfriend and the sparring skills he'd heard he possessed.

Rodney finally turned to get a good look at the attacker Jennifer had taken down. He'd secretly been curious to see what the man looked like and whether he thought he could've taken the man down himself. "That's not good," he exclaimed as he lifted his P-90 unconsciously in response. The men around him did the same, swiftly coming to his side.

"What…," Sheppard began to ask, but McKay already had his hand raised pointing at the man and the gun shot wound on his chest.

"What have you gotten yourself into," Cameron quietly asked aloud as he looked at the clear evidence that whoever had Jennifer now, was ruthless.

The five thoroughly swept the area for any evidence they may've missed while Ronon studied the ground and impressions there. Once they were finished Ronon pointed in the direction they needed to head and Cam stopped to make a quick radio check with his men.

"Baker, this is Mitchell, Report."

"This is Lt. Mooney, sir," the Marine responded. "Captain Baker is staked too close to the bogie to respond, sir, but nothing new to report."

"Thank you, Lieutenant." Cam tried to give Ronon a look to say it would be just one more second as he felt the Satedan's patience waning. Cam felt the same way, but they all needed to be on the same page.

"Reynolds, this is Mitchell."

"Reynolds here, we're heading out of town following a farmer to a supposed camp of one of the dead men. We're about…" Cam heard Reynolds radio click off for a moment then back on.

"Maybe halfway there now. We'll check in again once we get there."

"Good to hear," Cam responded. "We've found Keller and the boy's captor bound and dead. We'll continue tracking through the woods. Mitchell out." Cameron gave Ronon a nod and the men began to move, although more alert and cautious in their steps.


	10. On the Doorstep

10 – On the Doorstep

Jennifer pulled out yet another crayon from her pocket, this one maroon, and darkened the letters of the last word. It had taken longer than she thought to write a message on the lowest slat near the floor of the cage she and Raimy were being held in. She had two things working against her, the need to do it as discreetly as possible and also making it dark enough to catch the eye of those that were on their way to rescue them. The first two crayons had been dark colors, brown and blue, she'd not even tried the orange or gold.

"Are you ready Raimy?" she asked as she finished darkening the last letter. She hoped the opening came soon. It'd been at least ten minutes since they'd been freed by one of the bad guys, if he could still even be called that. She wanted to be moving.

"Yes," the boy responded quickly.

"We'll have to move quickly and this time try not to leave a trail. Hopefully Teal'c is as good as they say at tracking." Jennifer look discreetly behind her at the man posted near them. He'd just finish a plate of food he'd brought out with him. She hoped he wanted seconds or thirds soon.

"Just think," Jennifer began, hoping to distract Raimy as well as herself, "it won't be much longer before you'll get to come visit my world." It did the trick.

"Yes, healer Jenn," Raimor responded, his eyes lighting up, "will I get to see the creatures Maton and I colored in those books?"

"I'll see what I can do," Jenn assured him, not able to hold back her smile.

"I'm most eager to see the thin one that stands taller than the trees."

"They are very impressive…" Jennifer stopped speaking when her eye caught their guard's movement. She and Raimy both tensed as she tried not to turn or show interest in his departure. She saw him, out of the corner of her eye, throw a glance their way before turning into one of the tents.

"We go now," Jennifer urgently whispered as she quickly, but cautiously swung the door open and slipped from the small, wooden cage.

Raimor was right on her heels as he slid past her. When she didn't move for a moment he took her hand. "What is it?" he whispered, his fear almost keeping the words from coming.

"Nothing, nothing… let's go," she whispered as she turned back to Raimy and indicated he should lead the way. She'd seen her medical pack and wanted desperately to grab it, but it'd take away their precious time and lead her further into the camp. She couldn't risk it.

Jennifer was grateful that it was dry out and hadn't rained for quite awhile because it kept them from leaving much of an impression on the earth as they moved into the woods. They were careful to try not to bend any branches back or step on any plants if they could help it. It'd make them harder to follow, but she hoped not too hard for SG1 to track.

After about three or four minutes of slipping through the woods she broke off some low lying underbrush of one of the bushes and gave one branch to Raimy and kept one for herself. Anytime their foot falls fell on loose dirt they did their best to brush them away. Jenn knew they were losing valuable time, but she hoped the effort was worth it. She could hear a river in the background and would feel safer once they were beyond it. The sound masked other noises in the woods and she was fearful they wouldn't hear the enemy if they approached.

They'd taken a different direction than the man who left for the village or the man who'd freed them and she could only pray it was not a direction Pharon and his men would search.

XXX  


Calyn rounded a corner in the path and saw the camp just ahead. He'd made good time after delivery the ransom demands to a boy at the edge of town. He picked up some speed as he crossed the remaining distance to the camp, eager to report his success to Pharon.

As he walked toward Pharon's tent he noted that the boy and woman were not in the cage yet, but wasn't alarmed by their absence. They hadn't been in the confinement when he'd left either, he thought as he ducked his head into the tent.

"Did you deliver the note?" Pharon immediately asked upon his arrival.

"Yes, no worries. I gave it to a boy at the edge of town and threatened him if he didn't deliver it right away," Calyn said with a grin. He'd enjoyed bullying the child, he didn't get to do so very often.

"Good. At least something is going according to plan," the leader proclaimed. "Did you happen to see or hear anything about SG1?"

"SG1?" Calyn asked, trying to hide any worry the name imparted.

"Yes, it seems that the woman is from their world. Good thing for us though, it will mean an assured position with the alliance when we deliver them."

Calyn was slightly worried at Pharon's arrogance that the capture of SG1 was so assured, but he hid it well. "Where is the woman and child?"

"They were fed and are now in the cage. We will use the exchange as a cover for the capture of…," the leader boasted.

"They are not in the cage, Pharon," Calyn interrupted.

Pharon yelled for the other two men as he angrily stomped out of the tent. He'd not given either man permission to play with the captives. Their new plan was too important for them to be risking injury to their hostages.

Once outside he found both men just exiting another tent and quickly heading toward him. They each cast a quick glance toward the cage on their way to him and he knew by the gesture that neither had any idea that their guests were gone.

"They've escaped," he hissed at them. "Get your guns now," Pharon barked, his anger making his vision blur. He watched his men scurrying about to do his bidding and the urge to beat one or two of them was strong, yet he forced himself to hold it in while they searched for the escapees. "They obviously didn't head toward the village or they would've run into Calyn. I'm guessing the gate if they knew where they were going. Let's find them fast."

Pharon headed out with his men thinking he couldn't have picked a more incompetent group of men if he'd tried. Three were already dead and once he figured out how this happened one or more of them would find themselves wishing they were as well.

XXX  


Mitchell crouched down with the rest of his team listening intently for any sounds coming from the camp. It looked deserted, but looks could be deceiving. They'd give it another moment and then they'd have to venture forward. They didn't want to lose any elements of surprise or prolong finding Jennifer and the boy.

"Sheppard and Rodney go right, Ronon will go left," Cam instructed. "We'll give you a minute to get in position then we go in." Mitchell looked about to see if there were any questions. "We need someone alive in case Doc and the boy aren't here." He gave everyone a meaningful look before nodding at them to go.

Mitchell looked at his watch and noted the time while they waited. He didn't like the fact that from this vantage point he could see a cage that was empty. He'd have preferred to see how Jenn and the boy were doing rather than fear what was happening to them. He tried not to look in its direction again. Cam pulled his P-90 into position and gave a nod to the Major, but at that exact moment he heard a noise coming from the far side of the camp.

"Sheppard?" he quietly demanded in his radio only to be greeted by the all quiet sound of two breaks on the mic.

XXX  


Sheppard and Rodney crouched down as low as possible hoping to stay hidden from whoever was coming down the path. They'd been waiting for the go signal from Mitchell when a noise down the well worn path they were standing on caught their attention. He'd quickly looked around for the best cover and had scurried there quickly with Rodney.

He heard the sound again and realized someone was coming. As the noise got closer he decided that it sounded like more than one person and he passed the information on to McKay. They both braced themselves and raised their P-90's to the ready from their hiding place.

The Colonel strained his ears trying to pick up the noise again, but heard nothing. He shared a glance with Rodney, but the scientist shook his head that he too couldn't hear anything. It could really only mean one logical thing as far as Sheppard could figure… whoever it was knew they were here.

XXX  


"How much further?" Colonel Reynolds asked the farmer as his group continued to move down the path. It seemed as if they'd been walking forever, but he was sure it was just his worry over the Doc that was making it seem so.

"If it wasn't for that bend in the path you'd be able to see it," the farmer said indicating a turn in the path about forty yards ahead.

Reynolds stopped them on the path and turned to the farmer. "Then we'll leave you here sir, thank you for all your help, but we need you to head back to town."

The man paused for a moment and looked at the head of security and got a nod from him as well. The farmer turned back to Reynolds, "Don't leave any of 'em breathing." He gave a nod of his head before turning and heading back down the path.

After he was out of earshot Reynolds turned back to his team consisting of Daniel and Vala, Granthum the head of security here on Darsam and Capt. Jacobs from Major Lorne's team. He gave them all a grin, "Despite what the wise local farmer just said, we do need at least one breathing in case we need any information."

Reynolds turned back toward the camp and raised his P-90 as they began a more cautious pace toward the camp. As they got closer Reynolds got that feeling he'd gotten when they'd been walking to the gate when Jennifer and Raimor had been taken. He was ill at ease and it was way too quiet. He raised his fist in a signal to go still and quiet while they all strained to hear something… anything.

When there was still nothing but his unease to go on, Reynolds gave Daniel and Vala a wave to go left while he gave Capt. Jacobs and Granthum the same signal to go right. They continued their slow progress toward the camp. When they were almost on the camp's doorstep he heard his radio come alive.

XXX  


"Is that you Reynolds?" Mitchell heard over his radio.

"Colonel Sheppard?" came the responding voice.

"You about gave us a heart attack," a very whiny Dr. McKay responded.

Mitchell let out the breath he'd been holding during the silence and took a few deep ones before cueing his own radio. "Well, now that the reunion is over with kids, maybe we can continue with our mission."

"On your command," responded Reynolds, with equal amounts of military respect and mirth in his voice.

"Let's move in," Cam commanded as he and Lorne lifted their P-90's and swiftly moved into the camp.


	11. Camp

11 - Camp

Captain Baker heard rustling in the woods twenty yards away where the bad guy had been holed up for the last couple of hours. Baker moved slightly to the left so he could get a line of sight on the guy hopefully without being seen. The rustling sound increased and the Captain knew someone was coming. He lifted his P-90 into position to wait.

He didn't have to wait long. He watched a man, presumably another bad guy, join the first and talk excitedly. The longer they talked the more excited and distressed the new comer seemed to become.

Baker cued his mic and whispered, "You catching this, Jefferies?" he asked of the Marine he knew was closest to his position.

"Yeah, what do you want to do?"

"Let's give the couple a moment to settle this themselves. If they can't then I say we offer a bit of counseling," Baker replied. "Mooney, Sanchez?"

"Making our way to the gate now," Mooney reported.

"Secure it," the Captain ordered.

"Yes, sir."

XXX  


Mitchell moved in quickly with the teams that were converging on the camp. The tents were secured within seconds and they found the camp deserted. As the teams spread out and secured the rest of the site they found the fire still burning, although low, and the food in one of the tents lukewarm, but not cold.

Cameron turned in a wide circle taking in everything around him, looking for anything that proved Jennifer had been here. She'd led them here, the cage screamed kidnapped and held, but he desperately needed confirmation. His eyes took in the tents, the cage and the picnic looking table, and then he noticed her med kit. The duffle bag, stuffed to the brim because she packed so much stuff with her just in case. There it sat and he felt the relief he'd desired for a moment before he remembered that she was now gone, and without her pack.

He strode over toward it and began searching it, not sure what he was looking for. He found the open box of crayons, a knife in a side pocket. As he was closing the pack back up he saw a few suckers remaining and paused to grin at the memory – he'd have to tease her about being such a litter bug when this was over. An arm reaching past him into the bag startled him momentarily.

"Great, there's a few left," he heard before turning, taking in the sight of a grinning Sheppard shucking the wrapper off the lollipop. Mitchell shook his head at him as he finished zipping up the bag.

"Blue's my favorite," Sheppard declared, not phased by the Colonel's look as he popped it into his mouth and immediately moved it against the inside of his cheek.

"Ronon found anything yet?" Cam asked, looking around the camp for the Satedan.

"Just about. He found tracks leading away, just sorting out the groups and how many…" Sheppard explained until he was interrupted by the radio.

"Colonel Mitchell, this is Captain Baker."

"Go ahead, Baker," Cam responded swiftly.

"About the hostiles," Baker began.

"Are they needing an intervention?" Mitchell enquired with a smirk.

"Actually sir, they just surrendered to us."

Mitchell shared a stunned look with Sheppard. He'd been thinking about having the team at the gate take them down anyway in hopes of gaining some much needed information.

"Sir," Baker prompted when there wasn't an immediate reply, "one of them says he cut Dr. Keller's bound hands free, as well as leaving the cage unsecured before he left her with the knife."

"But yet he left them here and ran away like a coward," Mitchell ground out, anger warring with his hope that Jennifer and the boy had escaped.

"He says they all would've been discovered if he'd stayed and tried to rescue them."

Cameron could hear a lot of arguing and pleading in the background, presumably from the man who'd tried to help. Mitchell looked around him briefly and found that everyone had gathered around.

"Secure them there, we're moving out to find Jennifer and Raimy," Cameron relayed to Baker, getting a nod from Ronon as the two made eye contact.

Cameron walked over to the cage, taking a deep breath to quiet the anger he felt at seeing how small the confinement was. He was worried about what other mistreatment they might have endured, but he quickly set it aside knowing he needed a clear mind to be at his best.

Jackson had followed Cameron over to the cage, his interest in the structure causing him to walk all the way around it. Jackson opened the gate-like door of the cage and peered in. He immediately noticed the leather straps on the dirt floor. His eyes were drawn to the markings on one of the bars near the floor. He looked at it intently for a moment before he quickly pulled back only to find himself blocked by the large chest of Ronon who was trying to peer around the scientist.

Ronon nodded toward the words scrawled in the cage. "What's that mean?"

With nowhere to go until Ronon backed up, Daniel tried to find a more comfortable half-standing half-squatting position while turning his head to look behind him at Ronon.

"It means that Cameron is rubbing off on Jenn," he said with a chuckle.

Ronon still had a puzzled look, but he stepped back and let the scientist past him.

"Cam," Jackson called to the Colonel, "your girlfriend left you a note," he finished, indicating inside the cage with a flick of his thumb in that direction.

Mitchell moved quickly around the cage and peered inside. It only took him a second to see the marking on the side and to decipher 'Grnmthr's'. He read it out loud. "To Grandmother's house we go."

Mitchell pulled back and stood up straight, a look of amusement on his face as he shot a quick glance toward Lorne, then Ronon, "Now that's **my** girl."

Lorne shook his head, but was grinning none the less.

Ronon looked toward Sheppard who'd been anticipating the big guy's silent inquiry. "It's a line from a song, and in this case means she and the boy are headed _over the river and through the woods,_ " he finished the last part on a laugh. It felt good to know the Doc still had her wits about her and at the moment wasn't in the hands of these mercenaries.

Cameron turned and scanned the large group, "Granthum?"

"Here," he called out, stepping into the Colonel's view.

"Would the boy know of any kind of camp, shack, shelter… um, hunting cabin type thing around here?" Mitchell asked hurriedly.

Granthum thought for a moment before looking up, "Joran does use a shelter a ways from here during the hunt season." The security man began nodding his head more excitedly, "Raimor would know of it." Granthum grinned for a moment before continuing, "and it would be over the river and through the woods as he spoke," Granthum gave a quick look at Sheppard.

Mitchell began giving orders, "Ronon will switch places with Granthum and join Reynold's team to track down the…" he looked at Ronon.

"Four."

"… the _four_ men out there trying to find Keller and Raimor," Cameron finished. He was grateful that not only did they all seem to be on the same page, not needing much to communicate, but Ronon was a lot like his Teal'c and even with just a look or a nod the man knew what was wanted.

"And Ronon," Cam started.

"Yeah," Ronon sighed, "you need at least one breathing in case…"

Cameron interrupted him, "We already have two in custody," he reminded him with a shrug of the shoulders.

Ronon gave him a grin before turning and heading out, not waiting to see if anyone was following.

"Are you sure it was wise to turn him into Conan like that?" Rodney commented, not really expecting an answer.

Mitchell turned to the remaining group, "Granthum," he said pointing at the man.

"This way," the lead security officer said, taking off in the direction of the shelter. He'd worked with Reynolds and his team through negotiations from time to time during the Tau'ri's visits to Darsam, but it hadn't prepared him for this. Watching and being involved in how they worked together and seeing their resolve was an experience he was proud to be a part of. He didn't want to let them down and he hoped his guess of the shelter was an accurate interpretation of what Raimor and the healer were trying to convey.

XXX  


Ronon had been tracking with the team close at his heals for nearly five minutes. The men they were hunting had been careless in their haste to get to Jennifer and the boy, leaving a path that wasn't hard for him to follow. It wasn't as good as Keller's, but then again, that had to be the easiest path he'd ever had to track.

Colonel Reynolds and Capt. Jacobs were keeping an eye out just behind him, followed by Daniel and Vala. The last two were squabbling just a bit here and there and reminded him a little of Sheppard and McKay, but he tuned them out just as easily as he did his fellow team mates. He'd worked with Jacobs a lot over the years and Colonel Reynolds reminded him a lot of Major Lorne, so he was grateful that those two were the two closest to him.

"Feels like we're headed toward the gate," Reynolds commented quietly as they moved stealthily along a quasi path in the woods. It wasn't a well worn path, but there had been some traffic through here.

Ronon nodded his head, agreeing with the Colonel – they were definitely moving toward the gate. What surprised him was that he hadn't come across any signs that Keller or the boy Raimor had been this way.

Reynolds radioed his men at the gate to give them the heads up. Just as he finished a muffled scream sounded from the distance.

"Sheppard," Ronon barked into his radio.

XXX  


Mitchell heard the scream and it felt as if his heart stopped even faster than his feet had. He was grateful Granthum had only paused before doubling his pace through the woods. He felt a slap to his back as Sheppard stepped around him and jogged on ahead. Jolted out of his stunned state he began moving again at the brisker pace.

"Sheppard," Cam heard over the radio.

"I know big guy," Sheppard radioed back without breaking his pace. "We heard it too. She sounded close. We'll take care of it, you find those thugs."


	12. Cabin

12 - Cabin

Jennifer sat on the ground, rocking back and forth while applying pressure to a cut bleeding profusely on her shin, trying to hold in any other cries of pain. As a doctor she knew the cut wasn't bad, but it stung like she couldn't believe.

She and Raimy had taken off their socks and shoes to cross the river. Jenn reasoned that having dry shoes when they emerged from the small river would be best to minimize any wet trail that could potentially lead the bad guys to them. She'd followed Raimy across making sure he made it before releasing her hold on him.

Just before she herself moved the last few steps to exit the river up the embankment, she felt her footing falter and was forced to throw herself toward the shore hoping to reach it rather than drench herself in the water. She made it with only the rolled up, right cuff of her pants getting wet, but in the process her shin had landed on a very sharp rock causing her to cry out before she could think to stop herself.

She rocked back and forth trembling from the adrenaline as well as pain and a lot of fear. Surely their captors had heard that.

"We've got to get out of here," Jenn said, looking into the face of a very distraught little boy. When he looked at her like that it was hard not to wish to pull him onto her lap and tell him it was going to be ok. Eight years old, she knew was an older and more mature age off-world than it was on Earth, but when a scared boy was looking at you with his bottom lip trembling and his eyes huge it was hard to think there was much of a difference.

"You have no shoes," he stated with a wobbly voice.

"You're right," she replied, remembering quickly that she'd been holding her boots when she'd felt herself begin to fall. She quickly pulled her knife from the camouflaged jacket and handed it to Raimy.

"Turn around," she told him even as she quickly started unbuttoning her shirt. Without finishing with the buttons she pulled it over her head. She quickly removed her standard issue tank from underneath, for once grateful that it was part of the uniform. She pulled the camo shirt back over her head and buttoned up enough to be decent.

"You can turn back around," she ordered, reaching for the knife he held. She cut the straps off and then sawed through the shirt, cutting it in half with the dull knife.

"This is why you always sharpen your knife," she ground out as if finally cut through the other side. Jenn sat down and quickly wrapped half around each foot and tied them on with the straps. When she looked back at her bleeding shin she shook her head, hoping they were found soon or that the bleeding would stop.

"Here," Raimor said, nudging her shoulder with his hand. Jenn looked up to find Raimy trying to hand her his socks.

"Thanks," she quickly said as she tied the two together and then carefully, but tightly tied them around her shin. "You'd make a great healer's assistance," she praised him as she stood. "Now let's hurry and get away from here," she instructed as she took his hand.

Raimor pulled at her hand as he took the lead. "It is not much further."

Jennifer didn't say anything, not wanting to upset the boy, but after the racket she'd just made with her scream, she wasn't sure it was a good idea to stop somewhere that wasn't far, far away from there.

XXX  


Ronon came to a stop and looked around the clearing. They'd continued in the direction of the gate for about 5 minutes since the scream was heard. He was getting antsy to hear something… anything from the team looking for Keller.

He'd stopped to take a closer look at their surroundings due to the more disrupted look of the ground at that particular spot. Ronon realized after a moment more of looking that this must've been where the mercenaries were when the scream had rung through the woods. Ronon frowned and growled as he realized what that meant.

"They turned and are moving upstream toward the scream now?" Jackson guessed aloud near Ronon.

"Looks that way," Ronon agreed as he also turned and started moving swiftly along the river bank.

"Mitchell, this is Reynolds."

XXX  


"Go ahead ," Cameron responded to Reynolds radio call as they arrived at the rivers edge.

"Sir, the mercenaries must have heard Doctor Keller's scream. Looks like they're headed in your direction."

Cameron shared a look with Sheppard then nodded to start crossing the river. They had to get to Jenn first.

"The good news," Reynolds continued, "is that we're only about five minutes behind them. Bad news is they're five minutes closer to your location."

"Copy that Colonel," Mitchell acknowledges as he exited the river on the opposite bank. "We'll see ya when you get here."

Cameron moved closer in to the group, pulling them in close. "You heard Reynolds, we're going to have company." Mitchell swung his gaze to Granthum, "How much further?"

"Just a couple of minutes," the security officer really hoped Raimor and the healer were there.

"I haven't seen any signs of them," Cam thought aloud. He'd feel better if he'd had to pick up a few sucker wrappers or such along the way, but he knew Jenn was too smart to leave a trail knowing the bad guys would be searching for her too.

"I'm not tracking them," Granthum tried to explain, "I'm leading you directly to the shelter using the most direct route. Raimor may be leading the healer the way he remembers traveling with his father."

Cameron was glad to hear that they were taking a more direct path and would get to Jennifer faster, but it relied on the fact that she was indeed being led by Ramior to the cabin. He tried not to let any doubts enter his thoughts at the moment. He felt in his gut they were right.

They diverted off the path and made their way through brush. About a hundred yards in Cam held up his fisted hand as they all came to a quick halt and hunkered down in the bush. Directly ahead of them was a small shelter. It was a great spot for a hunting cabin. Near the water and the trail taken to and from, yet far enough off the path to not spook the animals with noises and such.

The group held their positions for a moment waiting for a clue – was anyone at the cabin and if so who? Cam signaled for Sheppard and Rodney to swing to the left, while Lorne and Granthum moved to the right.

XXX  


Jennifer and Raimor held their breath on the far side of the shelter away from the path. She'd been afraid to go in, afraid it would limit their escape. Just after arriving they'd heard a small rustle in the bushes and had been hiding on the far side ever since. The noise hadn't reoccurred, but she wanted to give it another minute while she tried to think of the next best step.

"Raimy, maybe we should try heading back to the town," she suggested in a whisper, wanting to know his opinion. She didn't know how far away the town was, but at Raimor's startled look she realized it might be farther than feasible.

The two heard another rustle and Jennifer tried to move them as far down into the bushes against the structure as they could get. She held still, trying to discern any more movement.

When more rustling came to her ears she wrapped an arm around Raimy and pulled him in tight to her side. She felt his small body trembling and tried to comfort him as best she could.

"My Cam will be here soon, I promise," she whispered fiercely in his ear. "No matter if they capture us again, it won't be for long."

Jennifer felt him nod his head against her and she held on to that promise just as hard too. Cam's team would be here soon, and just like when she and Teyla had their run in with the Bola Kai, they just needed to hold it together until rescue arrived.

XXX  


Cameron gave a quick look at his watch. They didn't have time to do proper surveillance before going in. If Jennifer and the boy were there they needed to get them and get out. If the mercenaries were already inside they'd have to improvise as they went.

Cameron cued his radio, "I'm going to go in. Stay alert – if the four thugs aren't here yet, they should be any moment and we don't want to be ambushed." Cam crept forward a few steps, "I'm sure Reynolds wants the honor of that task," Cam whispered sarcastically, hoping to relieve some of the tension as he made his way to the cabin.

"It _would_ be a privilege," came the hushed voice of the Colonel in question over the radio.

Mitchell smirked as he flattened himself against the cabin, "You slow-pokes have to concentrate on getting your asses here first."

"Movement outside, halfway down, against the house," Sheppard radioed, seeing a slight sway in the bushes in front of him.

"Here we go," Mitchell whispered as he peaked around the corner to the side Sheppard had eyes on. In front of him were more overgrown bushes and no visual on what caused the rustle in the bushes. If it were the mercenaries he was pretty sure they would've made their presence known by now.

"Keller," he called out softly, but got no response. Cameron moved further around the corner and crouched down in the bushes, "Jennifer," he called a little louder. After what felt like another long pause, Cam noted movement in the bushes and he steadied his P-90.

"Cameron?" he heard on a whisper, as he expelled a breath he didn't know he was holding. While staying low to the ground he quickly moved along the side of the cabin.

"Jenn," Cameron called out when he came closer to the location of the movement. He watched her head slowly rise above the bushes and he couldn't stop the grin from appearing on his face.

Relief began to overwhelm her as Jennifer stood all the way up. Tears gathered while she grinned back at him, but before any words could leave her mouth she heard a shot almost the same moment she heard the impact against the house about a foot away.


	13. Rescued

13 - Rescued

Raimor had just started to rise when the chaos broke out. He felt his shoulder grabbed and he cried out with fright.

"You're going to be okay," Sheppard said hurriedly, hoping to calm the startled boy.

"Let's get them in the cabin, now," Mitchell yelled, grabbing Jenn's arm and pulling her down and forward.

"It's okay, Raimy, these are my people," Jennifer shouted, trying to reassure the boy as she felt herself being quickly propelled toward the front of the cabin.

"Lorne," Cam shouted.

"We're moving your way. We have the front covered, you're clear," the Major radioed back as he and Granthum laid down cover fire in front of the cabin.

Sheppard maneuvered the boy just behind Keller and Mitchell and followed them forward while covering their six. Rodney was guarding at their side as the party reached the front of the cabin and then up the few steps to the door of the cabin.

Cam didn't even check the door as his foot made contact with it in a violent kick. The door gave easily and he pushed Jennifer through. Sheppard followed Jenn in with a firm grasp still on Raimy, "Both of you down on the floor over there as flat as you can get," John ordered as he pushed the boy into Jennifer's arms and indicated a spot off to the right.

McKay and Mitchell stayed outside on the porch, peppering the woods in front of them with P-90 fire. Cameron heard the thud off to his left as Lorne's body collided with the cabin. "On three," Cam yelled.

On the count of three McKay and Mitchell swung long arches of P-90 fire as Granthum and Lorne moved up the stairs and into the cabin. "Go McKay," Mitchell yelled as he started backing up toward the door himself. With a bit of relief he entered and shut the door, his eyes searching for Jennifer. Spotting her flat on the floor he moved in her direction.

"You both okay?" he asked, moving toward the small glassless window just past the two.

Jennifer began to raise her head to answer, but felt Cam's hand pushing it back down as he passed by her.

"Keep it down, Doc," he warned.

"So far so good," she replied, her arm around Raimor's back giving him a slight squeeze of reassurance. "Glad to see you all though."

"Same here, Doc," Sheppard called out from a window opposite Mitchell.

"You know you could just invite us for dinner if you wanted to see us," Lorne teased, covering one of the front windows with Granthum.

"It wouldn't be nearly as fun as this," Jenn retorted, her head still kissing the ground.

"No one is calling this fun," Rodney griped, but didn't miss the looks and grins passing between the military men, "except for the adrenaline junkies, of course."

"Reynolds, did ya get lost?" Mitchell called over the radio as he sporadically exchanged fire with the bad guys.

"About one minute out," came over the radio and it was evident in his voice that there was running going on.

"Just follow the noise, you can't miss us," Cam instructed.

"Should've known it was you making all that racket," came the voice of Vala over the radio.

"Did you have to invite everyone?" Jennifer sarcastically drawled.

"I didn't invite _all_ of them," Cam replied mockingly, "but you know your side of the family, just a bunch of free-loading party crashers."

"Well, I'm ready for this party to be crashed," Jenn exclaimed as a bullet sounded a lot closer than she would've liked.

"Me too," McKay agreed.

Their radios crackled to life, "Mitchell, this is Reynolds. Hold your fire."

Mitchell clicked his radio once that he understood. The team in the cabin listened to a quick volley of shots outside and then silence.

"Ambush complete," Reynolds proclaimed over the radio as the team inside heard steps on the small porch outside.

"Took you long enough," Cam complained good-naturedly as Reynolds entered the cabin followed by the rest of the team.

Jennifer slowly made her way to her feet and helped Raimy to his feet. She looked around at all the faces in front of her and couldn't help but grin at them. Seeing those from Atlantis touched her heart. "Look, I leave home and yet you all still get the privilege of rescuing me."

Jenn heard a bunch of snide remarks and such beginning and she cleared her throat. "Raimy, these are my friends from my world," Jennifer told him while grasping his hand.

"There are a lot of them," Raimor replied, feeling a little overwhelmed at the number of people standing in the small cabin.

"With Jenn it kind of takes the calvary…," Cam started to pipe in.

Jennifer turned to see him standing next to her and punched him in the arm to stop his mocking retort before sliding her arm around his waist and giving him a squeeze.

Cameron returned the gesture with an arm over her shoulder and a slight hug. He wanted to hold her tight and not let her go, but while the danger had been dealt with, they were still far from being done with this mission. Cam felt a slight pull and realized Jenn was turning back toward Raimy.

"This is my Cam," Jennifer said by way of introduction to the young boy.

 _This is my Cam_ floated through Mitchell's head. She sounded like Vala when she said it like that. He hadn't expected the tightened feeling it left in his chest. He suddenly understood why Jackson never seemed to object when Vala referred to him as _her Daniel_. What he didn't understand was how it didn't make Daniel melt or take her in his arms and prove that she was _his Vala_.

Jenn's voice pulled him back, "Cameron this is Raimy, the bravest eight year old I know."

Cam pulled his arm down from around Jenn's shoulders and shook the boy's hand. "Thank you for looking out for her until we could rescue the two of you," he said sincerely, smiling at the slightly embarrassed child.

Jennifer motioned Ronon over with her hand, "And this is Ronon. He's the one that taught me how to fight and about survival."

Raimor looked incredulously from the big man in front of him up to healer Jenn and back. "You lost him for seven years."

Jennifer let out a light laugh, "No, we _found_ him after seven years."

"Yeah," Lorne smirked, "Sheppard has a habit of taking in strays."

"Hey," John began to object.

"Where is Teyla, by the way?" asked Cam, thoroughly enjoying the play between friends in the room.

"Visiting her people," Sheppard answered. "Teal'c?" he shot back.

 _Touché_ , Cam thought. "Visiting his people, although… not my stray."

"What happened to your boots?" McKay asked, looking at Jenn's feet peaking out from the cuffs of her pants.

Jennifer lifted the pant leg up a bit to show the others her handy work. "Lost them in the river when I fell and cut my shin," she said as she lifted the pant leg high enough to show the make-shift bandage. She looked around at those gathered, "I need a couple of your first aid kits."

She was quickly handed three and she sat upon the floor and properly dressed her wound. When she finished she watched Cam kneel at her feet, his black t-shirt removed from beneath his uniform and knife in hand. He cut the shirt up and began to wrap her feet better to withstand the trek back to the gate.

"So," Reynolds began, turning to the head of security for Darsam, "what do you want done with the bodies?"

"Do not worry about this. My security force and the townsfolk will clean this up. You have already done enough," Granthum replied. He was grateful to see Raimor and the healer safe again and knew his people would be grateful to learn that this was settled. "We can grab a pair of Lady Adeya's shoes on the way through town for the healer," he offered, nodding toward Jenn's feet. "I would like to accompany you back through the gate and give a report to Sir Joran."

"You're welcome to come with us," Mitchell agreed. "There are two other men being held at the gate…" Cam let trail off as he looked at Granthum for guidance.

"I will request my men come with us to retrieve them," the security man supplied.

Jennifer pushed herself off the floor and to her feet, testing out how they felt when she walked. "One of the men tried to help free us. What'll happen to them?" she asked, knowing that even with the guilt he felt, the man was still in the wrong and had put their lives at risk.

"That will be up to Sir Joran," Granthum admitted. "I'll inform him of the prisoner's kind act toward you and his son." Granthum didn't know the young healer well, but he knew that Sir Joran and Lady Adeya thought highly of her. His opinion, knowing that she'd voluntarily turned herself into the captors to protect Raimor and not allow him to go through this ordeal alone, now matched theirs.

XXX  


Once they reached the gate Jackson moved to begin the dialing sequence for home. Mitchell had agreed to allow Granthum and another of his security officers to accompany them through the gate to retrieve the ruling family and their wounded officer.

The remaining four other security officers had taken possession of the two deserters. Jennifer approached the men slowly, not sure exactly what she wanted to say, but needing to say something to the man who'd helped her and Raimy.

She stopped when she was a few feet in front of the man, "What's your name?" she asked, buying a little time to sort her thoughts.

"Galen," he responded, his guilt over his part in the ordeal evident in his demeanor.

"Although I know you had a part in our abduction," Jenn began, "I'm thankful for your change of heart and for helping us." She was amazed how different he looked now, standing before her, than he did racing into the camp a few hours ago. He was now the very picture of a man down on his luck.

The teams standing in groups around the gate had become silent, straining to hear the conversation between the prisoner and Doc.

"Healer, it is not for you to be worried about what becomes of me. I accepted this job of kidnapping of my own free will. Pharon offered money for this job, money I thought I needed to support my family better. It seemed to justify the amount of time that the boy would be away from his own family. I did not think of what he or his family would feel or of the possibility that someone could be hurt." Galen looked at his feet again, ashamed.

Jennifer saw the gate come to life in her periphery, but her eyes swung back when she heard Galen begin to speak again.

"When I saw SG1 come through the gate," he continued, "I finally realized what I had done, what we'd gotten ourselves into," Galen's voice rose, angry at himself. "The very people who helped deliver us from the clutches of the Ori were here to rescue you and the boy…" his voice grew quieter as he bit out, "from us."

Jennifer took a step closer, feeling for the man in front of her despite his earlier actions. The security team holding the men tensed slightly at her move, but she ignored them. "I can only speak for myself, but I'm grateful that upon realization, you tried to help us." She gave him a small nod before turning back toward Cam and Raimy waiting for her to join them and walk through the gate.


	14. Tradition

14 - Tradition

The teams made their way down the ramp at the SGC, tired but on a high from being home after a successful mission. Jennifer felt Raimy's hand pull free a few steps from the gate and watched him run down into the waiting arms of his mother and family. Jennifer slowed her steps slightly, trying to give the family a moment before she reached the bottom of the ramp.

The sight in front of her of the happy reunion made her feel a little bit on the misty side as she took a deep breath to calm her emotions. She felt a squeeze to her arm and turned to Cameron.

He gave her a small smile of encouragement knowing the impact it had on her.

General Landry was the first to greet them as they stepped off the end of the ramp. "Welcome back Colonels," he greeted both Reynolds and Mitchell.

"Thank you, sir," they both returned.

Cameron turned behind him and gestured for Granthum to step forward. "Sir, this is Darsam's head of security, Officer Granthum. He'd like to debrief Sir Joran and then later his team will escort the ruling family home. Granthum, this is General Laundry, the leader of this facility."

"Welcome to the SGC, Officer Granthum," Landry smiled as he extended his hand.

"Thank you sir, for your hospitality toward our leaders and my injured man, as well as your assistance during this unfortunate occurrence," the security man responded. "We regret that your people were put in danger during their visit to our world. We are however grateful for the quick action of the rescue teams and are in debt to your healer for her selfless act of protection to young Raimor."

"That is what friends and allies are for," the General assured him, brushing off the praise.

Landry turned back to the teams, but addressed Colonel Mitchell, "Let's have a quick debrief now with Officer Granthum, Sir Joran, Colonel Reynolds and yourself, so that they are free to go home. The rest of the teams can make their way to the infirmary for post-mission physicals. We'll have a full briefing at 0800 tomorrow."

General Landry looked pointedly at Colonel Sheppard and the large number of Atlantis personnel in his gateroom, "The rest of you can go back where you came from, but I expect the mission reports on my desk tomorrow at the conclusion of the morning briefing that you all will attend."

"Yes, sir," Sheppard responded, although the merriment in his eyes let the General know the younger man knew Landry's bark was his way of accepting their actions, but reminding them who was in charge.

Sheppard watched the General walk away, when he turned back toward the teams he caught the lifted eyebrow and smirk from Mitchell, "He loves me," John smirked.

"Ya better hope so," Cam responded with a laugh.

They both turned and watched Jennifer hug and laugh with all of the teams as the Atlantis contingent prepared to depart.

"Never a dull moment," Sheppard commented.

"Not a one," Cameron agreed.

"It's not like she gets in more scrapes on or off world than the rest of us, it's just that it's infinitely more satisfying to come to the aid or rescue a young, pretty, civilian doctor, then the rest of us military folk," the Atlantis Colonel observed aloud.

"So it's the damsel in distress thing?" Mitchell wondered as he watched Jennifer giving Jacobs a hard time about something judging by his blush.

"Got me, but I know the guys like rescuing my team for the bragging rights," Sheppard smirked at Cameron, shrugging his shoulders, "it boosts moral." Sheppard gave a silent nod to the Atlantis crew, who began to move to the far side of the ramp in preparation for transport. "Guess we better go before we wear out our welcome with the General."

XXX  


Jennifer gave a wave to her friends before stepping up to Raimy's family. "Addy?" Jenn quietly inquired.

Lady Adeya turned and flung her arms around the healer. "I can not find the word adequate to express our gratitude," Adeya mumbled as she hugged Jenn fiercely.

"I actually just kept him company," Jennifer tried to deflect some of the praise, "Raimy was so brave and he is the one who led us to the cabin where our teams finally rescued us."

"It was more than that," Adeya assured her before stepping to the side and allowing her husband to offer his gratitude also until an approaching figure caught their attention.

Jennifer watched Cameron come to a stop at her side and fought hard not to lean into him. On base, while on duty, they both tried to maintain a very professional appearance.

Lady Adeya looked up at the man at healer Jenn's side and gave him a watery, but warm smile. She leaned up and kissed him lightly on the cheek, "Thank you."

"It was my pleasure," Cameron told her with a grin. "I'm here to escort you all to the infirmary. Dr. Keller and Raimy both need to have quick physicals. While you all are doing that, Sir Joran and I'll be in a short briefing. I'm told when that has finished your security team will take you home."

Raimor shifted to healer Jenn's side. "Will I not get to see the creature who stands taller than the trees?"

"The what?" Cameron asked.

Jennifer looked up to find all eyes on her, most with the same confused look as Cam, "A giraffe," she said with a grin. "We'd hoped they'd get to spend some time on Earth and maybe see some of the animals they'd been coloring."

"And the creatures that interact with people?" Maton asked, excitement dancing in his eyes as he added, "and touch them?"

Cameron began to usher them down the hall as he spoke, "Your father and I need to get to a meeting, but I'll talk to the General and see what can be arranged." This earned a smile of appreciation from Lady Adeya.

"Maybe in a few days," Cameron continued as they wound their way through the hallways, "we can arrange for you both to come back and Dr. Keller and I can take you all to a zoo to see..." he turned toward Maton, "and touch the animals."

Cameron laughed as the boys began to excitedly describe all of the creatures they hoped to see and Jennifer tried to supply the names as best she could.

XXX  


Cameron wandered into the infirmary over an hour later looking for Jennifer. She hadn't been at the gate when the Darsam leaders had departed for their home world. He knew this is where she'd be.

Cam found her standing at one of the counters writing in charts. Judging by equal piles on each side of her, she was probably half way done and completely engrossed in her task. He made his way quietly to her side and hugged her from behind. "You scared me today."

"I didn't mean to," she quietly answered while turning around in his embrace. "I couldn't let him be taken alone."

"I know," Cam answered, "one of the things I love about you."

Jennifer furrowed her brow at him, before smirking, "You sure?"

"Not the volunteering to be kidnapped part," he laughed lightly, "your protective instincts… your need to help, heal and comfort those around you."

Jennifer leaned her head on his chest and hugged him close. She'd been prepared for a lecture and instead he'd caught her off guard with his understanding.

"By the way," Cameron started and she could hear the humor in his voice, "nice use of duct tape _and_ crayons today, Dr. Gretel."

"Like I haven't heard that new nickname non-stop since I got back," Jenn sarcastically informed him as she moved to pull back and look up at him. "I finally had to tell Matt and Raimy the story of Hansel and Gretel."

Cam looked at her, a little concerned, "Doesn't a witch capture the children and try to fatten one of them up to eat?" he asked his brows furrowed.

"Yes, and I think the kids even kill her in the end by burning her in the oven," Jennifer laughed, "but I didn't relay that part. Just the part about leaving a trail through the woods so they could find their way home."

"Do you want to talk about what happened out there today?" he asked with more seriousness in his eyes.

Jenn shook her head, "It can wait for the briefing in the morning. I just want you to take me away and help me forget the events of today."

"What'd you have in mind, darlin'?" he asked with a wicked grin.

"You're terrible," she chided with a grin. "I need about fifteen or twenty minutes here, but then I want to go home," she said wearily.

He knew by home she meant his off base apartment and it thrilled him still every time she referred to it as 'home'.

"And…" Jenn declared, "I'm starved. Some Chinese take-out on the way home with extra fortune cookies," she said with a wink at him, "would be a great way to end this day."

Cameron had to agree, "Well, hurry up then. I'll go grab a shower and place our order." He leaned in close to her ear, "No dawdling, doctor."

She pointed at the door with an exasperated look on her face, but he saw her blushing and couldn't help but be tickled he could do that to her. "I'm loving you, Jenn," he told her.

"Me too," she said as his lips settled on hers in a quick kiss. She knew this wasn't the best place or time for kissing and Cam seemed to know it too.

XXX  


Jennifer set aside the last of her Chinese food that she couldn't finish and grabbed two of the fortune cookies. She half scooted, half crawled across the couch and onto Cameron's lap.

"Here," she said, handing him a cookie to unwrap while she began unwrapping the other. "You go first."

Cameron popped half the cookie into his mouth while he looked at his fortune. "I'm going to need a do over," he insisted with an annoyed look.

"It can't be that bad," Jenn insisted as she leaned toward Cam to sneak a peak at his fortune.

"A scholar's ink lasts longer than a martyr's blood," Cameron read before sliding a look at Jennifer daring her to contradict him. "While kissing Jennifer," he added. They'd been playing this game for a long time now, since before they'd even officially started dating while she'd been on Atlantis in the Pegasus galaxy. He'd sent the cookies up in care packages and from there the tradition had been born.

"Okay, yeah… a little morbid maybe," she laughed. Jenn turned her own slip of paper over and read, "A conclusion is simply the place where you got tired of thinking... while kissing Cameron." She grinned at him, "Usually it _is_ your kisses that cause me to stop thinking."

Cameron leaned in and gave her a quick, although deep kiss before pulling back and holding out his hand. "I need another cookie, woman."

He grasped her hips to keep her from falling off his lap while she leaned down to the coffee table to grab two more cookies. He ripped the next open and broke it in two, again eating the first half. "If you want the rainbow, you must put up with the rain… while kissing Jennifer. Not much better," he grumbled.

"A thrilling time is in your immediate future… while kissing Cameron." She slid a sideways glance at Cameron while trying not to laugh.

"It does speak the truth," Cam said, giving her a playful look. "Why are you getting all the good ones?" he complained. "I want another one."

Jennifer leaned down again, letting out a sigh of mock exasperation. When she righted herself with his help, she offered him another cookie.

Cam shook his head, "No, I want yours, you can have that one. The cookies seem to know which ones I'm going to get… so I want yours."

Jennifer rolled her eyes heavenward, "Yeah, right… the cookie knows all," she said mocking him as he broke open the cookie, not even bothering to eat this one. Jennifer watched Cam grin and knew he'd finally gotten a good one.

"Plan for many pleasures ahead… while kissing Jennifer," he read before looking up at her, his eyebrows wriggling suggestively.

"I have to read mine still," she said, batting his roaming hands away, "actually I have to read _yours_ still." Jennifer unwrapped the cookie and broke it in half. She dropped the cookie parts to the coffee table before finally reading it aloud, "You will be fortunate in everything you put your hands to… while kissing Cameron."

"You heard the cookie, darlin'," he said, while laughing at her reddening face.

He pulled her head down to his before kissing her long and hard. The relief that she was home and in his arms pushed him on as much as his desire to express the feeling of love and happiness he couldn't seem to find the words to convey.

Jennifer kissed him back with equal passion, losing herself in this physical conversation of emotions overwhelming them. It wasn't until she felt his hand slide under her shirt and across her bare back that she pulled back groaning her dismay. "I really need to shower," she reluctantly told him.

"Then go," he said as he helped her off his lap and shooed her toward the bedroom. "Go grab that shower, you'll feel better once you do and I'll clean this up quick," he said indicating their discarded dinner.

When she hesitated, he pulled her close and kissed her one last time before turning her round and giving her a push toward the door of the bedroom, "Off with you," he said giving her butt a parting smack. "And no dawdling, Doc," he called out to her retreating back.

XXX  


Jennifer pulled her hair up into a loose ponytail. She felt so much more like herself. She'd showered and even blown her hair partway dry. She was now wearing lounge pants and shirt. She'd taken inventory in the mirror and other than a minor bruise appearing on her cheek and the small cut on her lip, had no other injuries besides the cut on her leg – she felt lucky.

Jenn wandered out of the bathroom and as she turned she was immediately greeted with the sight of Cameron lying on the bed in nothing but boxer briefs and dog tags. She grinned at him as she made her way over to the bed. The mere sight of him stole her thoughts.

"If I remember correctly, this is about where we left off this morning and you owe me," Cam said with a challenge.

Jennifer knelt at the foot of the bed and began to slowly crawl up his body. "I think your memory is failing a bit," she said with a smirk as she consciously began a re-enactment of that morning.

"Is that your professional opinion, Dr. Keller?" he asked, the familiarity of the moment not lost on him.

"If you want a professional opinion I'd have to run a few more tests," she teased as she finally came face to face with him.

She leaned down and kissed him briefly, a vanilla scent assaulting his senses sending a feeling of déjà vu ricocheting through his mind. He inhaled deeply before she kissed him again.

"And how many of these tests are there?" he playfully asked.

She heard the huskier quality to his voice and it sent a pleasant shiver up her spine. "Just a couple more," she answered near his ear as she peppered kisses along his neck, "Colonel."

He growled as he suddenly and swiftly flipped her to her back and leaned over her, effectively pinning her down. "Doctor," he warned.

"I'd say it was a temporary lapse," she lifted her lips for a quick kiss. "We now seem to be exactly where we left off," Jenn lifted again to meet his lips. "I'm loving you, Cam," she whispered when he broke the kiss.

"Me too," he answered, the playfulness replaced by the serious, but adoring look on his face.

She closed her eyes as his lips found hers again. Tomorrow morning she'd have to relive the mission gone wrong and the part she'd played in it, but for tonight she could allow Cameron to drive it far from her mind just like the kissing tradition of the fortune cookie had foretold.


End file.
